Carousel
by Daughter.of.Despair
Summary: Uchiha Sasuke, 17, has weaved a tangled web. What's a poor, closeted teenager to do when your friend is trying to hook up with your secret boyfriend, your boyfriend don't know you're keeping him secret, they're all meeting up at the festival and your only advisors are a psychopath and a perceptive barrista? AU. NaruSasu. Naruto/Sasuke. Sub: NejiGaa. Slash. Yaoi. Twoshot. Mature.
1. Part One

**Disclaimer: You all know this part; it's mostly out of courtesy. I don't own Naruto and I am ever grateful to Kishimoto for creating it. He's a cool dude. **

**Couples: Naruto/Sasuke (Sub: Neji/Gaara.) **

**Rated: M (as in Mature, yaoi, boyxboy smex etc.)**

**Please note: In this story they do not practise the use of condoms. Thankfully, they are fictional characters and so need not worry about sexually transmitted diseases, you, little children, do have to worry. So please practice safe sex. **

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**A/N1: Originally, this was intended as a short, cute little ficcie of about 15 pages. When I hit 30 I realised it had gotten away from me rather spectacularly. As such, I divided it into two parts to make a lovely little two-shot. More on the update at the end:)**

**A/N2: I had a lot of fun writing this one. Sasuke gets to be a bitch (which **_**is**_** canon, if you think otherwise you haven't read the same manga I have) but still quite likeable as time passes I think. Gaara gets to be a crazed psychopath yet still function in society, and I just love him in this story. I also finally had the opportunity to make Gaara and Sasuke good friends, something I have long wanted. To top it off it is quite light-hearted, the polar opposite of my 'Objects in the rearview mirror'. So have fun little kiddies!**

* * *

_Carousel_

_By: DaughterofDespair  
_

"…so we said we'll all meet up at the festival", Ino said, her voice alive with excitement, "I want all of you to meet him!"

"And I can meet his handsome friend again", giggled Sakura. The two girls were significantly more thrilled at the prospect than the three boys on the other side of the table. Shikamaru looked ready to fall asleep at any moment, Chouji was too busy munching down his lunch to listen and Sasuke tried to keep his face from revealing the icy sensation of dread assaulting his limbs.

"Mm, Naruto is _so _your type isn't he?" Ino said, smiling devilishly at Sakura. "Though", she added with a small laugh, "he's _everyone's_ type. You know, if I hadn't met Sai first…"

"Don't even think about it!" Sakura interrupted. She grinned widely and proclaimed: "I've got dibs. Naruto is _mine_."

Sasuke felt nauseous. Somewhere in his mind he was furious, but he couldn't seem to feel it through the massive train-wreck that had, until a few short minutes ago, been his life.

'_Oh god'_, he thought, _'how did I ever get myself into this mess?'_

* * *

To find the answer we have to turn the clock back a few months, to an unusually warm and early spring that gripped Konoha at the end of February. March saw days of bright sunshine and blossoms –days kind enough to allow students like Sasuke to stray outside to do their homework. And on just such a day, his slow descent into catastrophe began.

Back then Uchiha Sasuke was a boy of seventeen attending second year of a public high school. He had a few, select friends there to pass the time with and his parents –though sometimes strict –loved their children as any parent would. In other words: he led a pleasantly ordinary life.

His group of friends had been created in middle-school when Sakura had fallen helplessly in love with Sasuke. It was the manner of obsessive knowledge-lacking love which only a preadolescent girl could manage and the ripples of it caused an unlikely scenario. Before Sakura's sudden interest in Sasuke the two girls had only socialised with Ino's childhood friends –Chouji and Shikamaru –if they had no choice. Sasuke, on the other hand, had been quite anti-social towards everyone except Shikamaru, who was both intelligent and quiet enough to pass the friendship bar for the young Uchiha. As Sakura swooned over Sasuke, however, the girls started hanging around the other boys to simply to increase the number of 'accidental encounters' between Sakura and Sasuke.

The romance had ended before it began when Sasuke informed the girl that he had no interest in dating. Their temporary group had persisted, though, and by the beginning of high school all five of them were used to each other's company. Even Sasuke had grown to like everyone in the group; Shikamaru's lazy brilliance, Chouji's endless appetite, Ino's gossip-frenzies and Sakura's violent temperament. Ino and Sakura could, however, be tiring at times –especially when certain topics were being discussed.

Though many thought that Sakura was dim –mostly due to her bubblegum-pink hair –she was normally both logical and intelligent. Ino too was far from daft, though she considered hair, clothes, nails and rumours more important than the coursework. But there was one subject that seemed to empty their minds of any substantial matter: boys.

The discussions on boys, dating, dances and by-the-locker romance was endlessly regenerating –much to the annoyance of the boys in their small group. Every so often they too would be dragged into the illogical mess of subjects; Shikamaru's suspicious behaviour was _surely_ a sign that he had met an older woman, Chouji's furious blushing in math was _definitely _due to a supposed crush on the girl from 2-C and Sasuke's disinterest in anything even close to dating was _absolutely _because he had a long-lasting unrequited love for a girl who had been his neighbour as a child. In all fairness they were probably right about Chouji, but their insistence on trying to read the minds and moods of himself and Shikamaru irritated Sasuke more for each passing day.

* * *

This particular mid-march afternoon found them eating a late lunch in the cafeteria of Konoha Public High. Ino and Sakura were once more in the process of analysing their prospects of getting a hot date for the spring dance and the boys were, as always, ignoring them.

"No, no, no. He's had that thing for Rin from 1-A", Ino was telling her pink-haired accomplice, "besides, boys our age are too immature, I say we try to hook some seniors. Abumi has been _really _talkative towards me lately; I think he might ask me." Sasuke disinterestedly poked at a potato on his plate with his fork.

"Are you asking someone, Sasuke?" Sakura inquired, interrupting his decent into absolute boredom. The girls both looked at him, interest shining in their eyes.

"No." He replied, trying to enforce through the word how very little he wished to talk about the dance. Truth be told, Sasuke really was disinterested in dating. To such an amount that he had never felt more than a slight attraction to another person. Sure, he could appreciate beauty or appeal and he could like someone's personality; but he had never felt lust strong enough to initiate anything physical, and he had most certainly never fallen in love. The whole concept was alien to him, and he had half a mind that it did not actually exist –that everyone in the world simply fooled themselves to believe that they wanted to tumble around between the sheets or cry for weeks over a lost love. Like one gigantic placebo-effect which had begun thousands of years ago and outlived all obstacles, noticed only by the logically coherent such as him and never exposed to the general public.

"Oh come on, Sasuke!" Ino complained. "Stop being such a prude! You must have someone you like. Just tell us and we'll help you!" Sakura nodded vigorously.

"And even if you don't", she said, flicking a pink strand away from her face, "we'll find you a good date. It's about time you came out of your shell." Sasuke felt his mood darken further, irritation sizzling in his limbs, a small spark away from flaring up into anger.

"Yes!" Ino persisted, oblivious to his waning tolerance. "You're so unsociable. I know lots of girls who would _love _to go out with you, why don't you just let us set up your date for the dance and you don't have to do-"

"No!" Sasuke interrupted, his voice carried several tables across causing a lull in conversation in the area around them. "I don't want you to set me up and I don't want a date to the dance, and I think I speak for all three of us-", he waved at Chouji and Shikamaru who were both watching intently "-when I say that I am bored stiff with your endless chattering about it. Everyone is not mindless, gossiping romance-junkies with a secret wish to be in an American teenage movie, so do us all a favour and _shut up_." He rose from the table. Though the lunch on his tray was less than half-eaten he was no longer hungry. He tossed it in the trash on his way out, still fuming.

He didn't calm down until he had exited the school and could breathe fresh spring air. As his head cooled the anger morphed into shame, weighing heavily on his conscious. Ino and Sakura hadn't deserved that kind of attack, and it was hardly their fault he was in a bad mood and that they had unknowingly touched a nerve. Talk of dating always put him on edge and to make matters worse he had been frustrated all day. His brother was home for the weekend –apparently his Thursday and Friday lessons had been cancelled –and that always managed to shorten his fuse substantially. It wasn't that he disliked his brother, in fact he loved him more than he loved his parents, but Itachi was just so damn… _smug_. Always better than Sasuke at everything –school, sports, socialising –and always quick to make Sasuke aware of just how _inferior_ and _naïve_ he truly was. He rubbed his face with the palms of his hands. He would have to apologise to the girls later, and he had one more class before school ended for the day, but he couldn't bring himself to face it. Instead, he fished his phone out of his pocked and texted his oldest friend.

Sabaku Gaara and Sasuke had known each-other since they were toddlers. They were both the youngest child of a respectable family; Sasuke's parents were doctors and Gaara's father was a well-trusted politician. Both of them had also grown up in the lurking shadow of their respective families. Sasuke had never truly lived up to the expectations his brother had set for him, and though Gaara's older siblings –Temari, a good friend of Itachi's of the same age, and Kankuro who was three years their senior –were hardly prodigies they had yet to end up in any great trouble –unlike Gaara. He had been born to an upstanding politician and looked much like his father, but they had never been on good terms. Temari said that it was because they were too much alike, but that was no more than a feeble try to cover up the truth. Gaara's father hated him for causing the death of his wife, who died during childbirth, and Gaara in turn had grown to despise his father for the cold treatment he had received all his life.

Gaara had grown up to be an intelligent, quiet and violent young man –in many ways an even stranger and more secluded version of Sasuke. The two of them had always been close, though, and he was the closest Sasuke had ever come to trusting someone completely. Nowadays they didn't meet as often, but still saw one another a few times a week or, like now, when one of them sought refuge from the idiocy of the world.

During middle school Gaara had finally snapped and arranged a lengthy hospital-stay for three unsuspecting youths. The incident had been the end of Gaara's father's patience and the young Sabaku had been forced to see a therapist as well as stop attending public school. These days he read his coursework online, at home, and still attended therapy once a week as far as Sasuke was aware. His temper had improved since, though it was still unwise to bother him purposelessly. The youngest Uchiha enjoyed his company more than anyone else's, partly because they knew one another inside-out, and partly because Gaara's combo of crimson hair, forehead tattoo, dark eyeliner, pierced eyebrow and permanent scowl made people keep their distance, and insured peaceful calm in his surroundings.

So Sasuke went by his locker to pick up his bag and then left towards the park he had named as their meeting place. Skipping a class didn't really bother him, and they were meeting up to study anyhow –something he did much better in the warm sun of early spring than in a dusty old classroom. It didn't take him more than twenty minutes to arrive at the green lawn of Hokage Park. The trees were sporting minty-green leaves and the grass was besieged by children, adults and students all the way from the street to the lake below. Sasuke spotted the tree under which he and Gaara usually sat when they visited this particular park, a large oak by the shore of the lake some way from the common area. With his sights set on the tree he trudged across the lawn, passing the football field where some people were in the middle of a friendly game.

Sasuke wasn't exactly bad at sports, but he found no interest in it –as a matter of fact, he found it blindingly dull. Had he been a tad more fascinated by it then he would never have started his descent into catastrophe. Had he thought it worthy of a glance as he passed the field he would have easily avoided the accident that came to be the change of his monotonous existence. But he didn't look, and he was so far into his own mind that he took no notice of the ball that went awry and came hurtling in his direction. All that he registered was a sudden _thud_ as his head snapped to the side. His unfocused eyes registered the black and white blur that rolled to a halt at his feet.

"_Hey!"_

His eyes slowly regained their sharpness and he could distinguish the ball on the ground, but his head still ached from the impact. He probably didn't have a concussion, though that was a small comfort when his skull felt like it had been battered by a hammer.

"_Hey! Oi!"_

He slowly bent down, picking the ball up and studying it. The pieces slowly fell into place in his throbbing cranium: someone had kicked a ball at his head. The agonising pain fuelled this thought into anger. Bloody perfect! His brother was home, waiting to tell him how much he had to learn about life, he had yelled at his friends for no real reason and now somebody had tried to crush his head with a football! Fury simmered in his blood, white-hot anger flashing in bursts from his injury.

"Hey!" Sasuke's head snapped around in the direction of the noise, his eyes dark with malice. The caller was only a few metres away, jogging towards him. His clothing –a t-shirt and shorts –as well as the sheen of sweat on his skin exposed him as one of the players, in all probability the kicker. Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously as the stranger came to a halt in front of him. His abdomen burned with anger and… something he couldn't quite put his finger on as he took in the form of the man in front of him. He looked to be a few years older than Sasuke, maybe 20 or 21, with tanned skin and a strong build. His muscles looked like those of a sportsman, suited for endurance rather than looking flashy. His face wasn't aristocratically handsome, but he was undeniably good-looking, especially with his rare blonde hair and brilliant sapphire eyes. Sasuke stopped himself in his assessment when he realised what the unknown sensation in his stomach was –lust. Out of all the people on the planet to manage the feat of making him sexually interested it had to be an idiot who couldn't even kick a ball in the right direction –and a man at that! The coiling fire of desire increased his rage tenfold. Unsure of how to handle this new responsiveness and angry at himself for feeling it he simply channelled the mayhem in his mind to the one thing he was sure of: he was pissed beyond any reasonable limit.

"Are you okay?" The vile kicker of doom asked him, his handsome features schooled into a mask of worry. As if Sasuke was buying _that_.

"Hn", he replied, sending a murderous glare in the blonde's direction before stalking off –with the ball still in his hands.

"Oi!" The blonde yelled, jogging up to walk beside him. "Look, I'm really sorry; I didn't mean to hit you-"

"That makes an astoundingly miniscule difference, idiot", Sasuke drawled and kept walking. The kicker did too.

"That's uncalled for y'know. It _was _an accident. Does it hurt a lot?" He still had that convincing look of concern on his face –apparently the kicker from hell was a good actor. Sasuke refused to answer and quickened his pace instead. He wasn't quite sure what he was doing, but he felt a strong need to rile this unknown man up. The blonde jogged up to him again.

"I'm sorry! I get it if you're mad but would at least give our ball back? Please? We really need to practise." Sasuke stopped dead in his tracks and turned towards his recently found nemesis.

"Obviously", he said, arching his right eyebrow –a standard Uchiha expression for mockery. "Though", he continued with a smirk, "I doubt that any amount of practise could make you a decent player, since you appear to be both dumb _and _blind." The player bristled with anger.

"You're a right bastard!" He snapped. "I _said_ I was sorry! And my aim is actually really good; I probably just mistook your gigantic head for the goal!" Despite the lingering fury Sasuke felt the rush of adrenaline from fighting take over, making him feel high. He enjoyed riling up the athlete.

"Hn", he replied, just for the sake of seeing the tick in the older guy's forehead grow. The blonde took a deep breath, calming himself down.

"I need to practise to keep up my scholarship, we have a game in less than a week", he said, his voice carefully controlled, "could I have our ball back?" He looked into Sasuke's relentless eyes and added: "Please?" Sasuke toyed with the ball in his hands, fixing the other man with an emotionless stare.

"I came here to work on an essay", he said –which was true, "it will decide not only my grade this year, but also whether or not I get accepted to a program this summer which will enable me to apply to nearly any university in the world." Two lies, the essay was a small analysis of a poem for English, and there was no such program, though Sasuke would be accepted wherever he applied anyway. "And finally that grade will decide whether or not I will be top of my school this year or not." Another lie; Sasuke's position as number one in the school was untouchable, the only other who could aspire on it was Shikamaru and he couldn't be bothered. All in all this worked up to an excellent finish however: "All of these things are dependent on this _one _paper which, in turn, demands my _absolute _concentration to complete. Now thanks to you my head will be about as useful as this ball" –he lifted the football –"for the rest of the day. So yes, I do believe it is fair that I take this."

Naruto's face had fallen during his little speech. It was quite understandable since Sasuke had made it appear as if his misdirected kick had caused Sasuke to go from future president to future unemployed drunk. Enjoying the look of misery on the blonde's face with grim satisfaction –his head still hurt like a bitch –he noticed a red spot behind the athlete. A wicked grin almost made its way to his face as he recognised his best friend closing in on them with his trademark blank expression. Sasuke was an expert in reading Gaara's moods however, and he noticed the small lift in the redhead's thin eyebrows and the gleam of careful curiosity in his azure gaze.

"Or", Sasuke continued evilly before the blonde had a chance to respond, "I could do to the ball what you just did to my head. Gaara?" He directed the last question towards his friend who was now only a few steps away. The redhead tilted his head in response –Gaara was never the talkative type. The poor football-player swivelled around to see whom the Uchiha was talking to. "Can I borrow your knife?" Sasuke asked innocently. Gaara didn't reply, but simply reached into the neck of his left boot and extracted the small –yet sharp –weapon he had made a habit of carrying around. Sasuke grasped it from his extended hand and watched the blonde's eyes grow large as he realised what was about to happen. "Fair is fair, no?" Sasuke asked him sadistically. The athlete blanched at the question, looking as if he was the one threatened with a knife and not his ball. The look was too priceless and Sasuke felt a snicker clawing at his throat. He felt a lot better now, and he'd had his fun. Besides, it was hardly the blonde's fault that he had been in a bad mood, or that he handled attraction badly.

He tossed the ball at the older boy, smirking at him as he caught it, dumbfounded. Then he handed the knife back to Gaara who tucked it back into his shoe without any comment. He nodded to his friend and they turned to leave.

"Hang on", the blonde finally managed to get out, "what, I mean…" Sasuke turned around and shot him a look of disinterest.

"I wouldn't ruin your ball just because your sense of aim cost me a few brain cells", he enlightened the stranger, "I'm hardly that petty. Go play with your friends or whatever." He realised he'd come off as a snobby, sadistic, malicious bastard with a superiority complex; a great first impression to make on the first person to ever make him lose his composure, really. But the stranger, to his spectacular surprise, laughed. A loud, hearty laughter unlike any Sasuke had heard before in his life. It made him even more attractive, sadly.

"You really had me worried there for a while", the blonde said good-naturedly, grinning at him, "sorry for hitting you, I really am, and thanks for giving me the ball back."

"Tch", Sasuke said testily. His hormones were acting up again and that laugh made his heart rate increase to unhealthy levels. The stranger turned and jogged back towards the field where his friends were looking impatient, waving at them as he went. They stood in silence for a few seconds, then turned and walked slowly towards their usual place.

"Explain?" Gaara inquired when they closed in on the tree. His voice was even and the question could easily be ignored; they always respected each-other's right to stay silent. But Sasuke's mind was already reeling with the implications of his behaviour during the short spat.

"He hit me in the head with the ball", he clarified, thinking about his mean attitude, "and it seems I'm becoming my brother." Gaara nodded slowly.

"Your behaviour was much like Itachi's used to be", he confirmed, "though I think…", he paused, "that though the effect was alike, the cause was very dissimilar" Sasuke felt a lurch in the area around his heart. Of course Gaara would see right through his performance to the core truth of it; quarrelling with the one he was interested in like a bothersome child.

"Yes", he replied carefully, "had someone dared to hit Aniki in the head with a football they would be either dead, hospitalised or ruined by the end of the day." Gaara smirked.

"Or worse", he added.

* * *

Little more than an hour later found the two of them deeply immersed in their respective coursework. Sasuke had written his analysis and was rehearsing his French glossary, and Gaara had dived into the world of advanced calculus, muttering curses under his breath as he jabbed at his calculator. Neither of them noticed the athlete coming up to them until his shadow was cast across their books. They blinked in unison, confused, and then turned to peer up at the intruder. The blonde smiled brilliantly at them, even sweatier than he had been previously.

"What?" Sasuke snapped –his mind still full of gardening-related words in French. The football-player's smile morphed into a lop-sided grin at the harshness of his tone.

"Still mad, huh?" He commented. "I was just coming over to apologise again. We've finished practice" –the Uchiha glanced at the field and saw the rest of the football-geeks leaving in the other direction –"and I thought I'd buy you a burger or something to make it up to you." Sasuke could feel the same malicious sensation as before bubble up inside him, a need to be mean fuelled by his inability to handle his own lust. It was begging him to explain to this _idiot _that a hamburger would surely be a fitting replacement for _his_ brain-cells, but not Sasuke's. He swallowed it decisively –he was the master of his own emotions, no matter how much he might doubt it sometimes –and tried his best to sound polite. He failed miserably.

"As much as I'd love to eat next to someone bathed in sweat…", he began, mentally kicking himself –polite indeed, "…I have to study." He finished lamely in a desperate attempt to cut his harsh words short.

"Ah", the blonde answered merrily, looking entirely unperturbed by the mean reception, "well I should probably go home and take a shower", he looked down at himself speculatively, "but I was worried you'd be gone by then", he finished, smiling at Sasuke. The Uchiha felt a soaring rush through his limbs, his heart-rate picking up alarmingly again. He didn't know what to do, how to answer. His tongue seemed glued to the roof of his mouth. And then, a hand showed up in the boundaries of his frozen stare.

"Here", said Gaara, his voice flat, and handed a slip of paper to the athlete, "It's his number", he added when he was assaulted by two confused pair of eyes. "And his address, in case he acts the bastard he is and refuses to return your call." Apparently done with the conversation, he resumed his assault of his calculator. The blonde's sapphire eyes glittered with mirth, his hand clasping around the paper.

"Would a coffee when I'm clean be that terrible?" He asked Sasuke, half-grinning. "I promise to leave the football at home." Sasuke scoffed.

"It had better be damn good coffee", he muttered. His response was met with a wide smile, surprisingly. Did insults and rudeness just bounce off this moron?

"Great! Oh, I'm Naruto, by the way", he introduced himself. Sasuke nodded absently; somehow the name suited him perfectly. "Uh… do you have a name?" Naruto continued. "Or do I just call you bastard?" He glanced at Gaara. "And bastards friend with the knife?" Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"It's Sasuke", he replied, sounding his usual self for the first time talking to Naruto, "and this is Gaara", he supplied, gesturing to his best friend, "a homicidal maniac with a secret love for racoons; that's why he looks like that." The final comment rolled out on its own, he and Gaara always introduced one another in the worst way possible –it was their private game of sorts. Naruto snorted with laughter, though, and had to hurriedly compose himself as Gaara sent a scathing glare his way.

"Sorry", Naruto apologised earnestly, "make sure to answer my call, Sasuke", he blinked at the Uchiha and left. Sasuke sat petrified. His name had never sounded as good as when Naruto said it, it had made him feel… _horny_, his mind supplied. _It makes you feel horny._

Well fuck.

"What did you do that for?" He asked the redhead when Naruto had walked far enough to be outside hearing distance.

"He was trying to ask you on a date", Gaara replied, flipping the page of his calculus book.

"So?" Sasuke countered, picking up his glossary again.

"So try not to drool into your coffee cup tomorrow."

* * *

_Hey Sasuke Bastard! How about that cup o coffee? This afternoon?/Naruto Aimless._

He had received the text during second period calculus –three hours ago –and he had yet to reply. Did he really want to face the enticing blonde again? The answer was simple. Yes. Yes he wanted to see Naruto again, and touch Naruto, and trace his fingers all over those perfect muscles and…

'_Shit. That's bad.'_ He thought sullenly. He was head over heels in lust with the blue eyed man and there was nothing he could do about it. Except, well, Naruto.

Dating the blonde would bring more complications than controlling his primal urges, however. First of all he was a man, and though he didn't mind homosexuality or bisexuality, nor did any of his friends or family for that matter –Itachi had several friends on the queer side of society –he didn't know how to apply it to himself. He had never been attracted to anyone so far except Naruto, so maybe it was just him. Maybe he was Narutosexual. The thought alone made him snort into his notes, causing Sakura –sitting to his right –to throw him a confused look. Their teacher didn't seem notice, continuing to tell them dreadfully boring facts about the industrial revolution without pausing.

That was another complication. He had apologised to the girls that morning, and with their assurances that they knew well enough how prissy Sasuke got when Itachi was in town the lot of them had gone back to normal. But how could he tell them he was going on a date with a man? How would they react?

'_Shikamaru and Chouji couldn't care less'_, he mused, _'Ino and Sakura…'_, he shuddered involuntarily at the thought of their gleeful shrieks. They had been yearning for a gay friend since middle school, they would be _thrilled_. Sakura threw him another look as he physically shook the image of their reaction from his mind.

What scared him the most was the idea of telling them all just to have the date blow up in his face. Maybe it wasn't even a date at all. Maybe Naruto was just genuinely feeling sorry about hitting him in the head and was simply the type of person to go out of his way to apologise. He certainly seemed to be that sort of person… and Sasuke had been unforgivably rude. Deciding that there was a simple way to decide how keen Naruto was on seeing him, he inconspicuously fished his cellphone out of his front pocked and typed in an answer.

'_Otogakure 1600'_

Send.

A satisfied smile made its way onto his face while he put the phone away. Sakura raised her eyebrows questioningly at his expression, but returned to her notes without comment. Sasuke ignored it, feeling smug. Otogakure was a small, local coffee-shop almost exactly midway between his house and Gaara's. It was their favourite place to meet up and it served excellent coffee. The owner was an original named Orochimaru, a middle-aged man with no family and an eerie appearance. Sasuke liked him though; his apparent oddness was actually just the product of a quiet demeanour. He reminded Sasuke of an older version of himself and Gaara; not very sociable, but intelligent and attentive. The best part about the café, however was that it was located far from the city centre and its reputation was nearly non-existent. Only locals from the surrounding neighbourhoods and the occasional lost tourist wandered in there. It was also unmentioned online, a strange quirk which Orochimaru refused to explain. As soon as any mention of it appeared, the owner found it and made sure it was removed.

Why was this excellent? Because the café would be almost impossible to locate and could only be found by asking around until you chanced upon someone who happened to know where it was. If Naruto wanted a date, he would have to work for it. Content, Sasuke turned his phone off and went back to taking notes.

* * *

"What kind of show were you putting on?" Sakura asked when they exited the history classroom.

"What?" Ino enquired, looking between them with earnest interest. She was much too fascinated by other people, Sasuke decided.

"Sasuke seemed to have a lot of fun for a few minutes during class", Sakura explained. Ino looked at him incredulously.

"Were you in the same history class as I? Ebisu might be the most boring teacher on the planet." She asked, staring dubiously at him as if he would reveal that in truth he had been in a completely different class with a joyful teacher aspiring on stand-up comedy.

"I wasn't laughing at Ebisu", Sasuke sighed.

"He giggled at his notes", Sakura reported as Shikamaru and Chouji sidled up with them –they took creative writing instead of history, a wise choice, in hindsight, "and then he twitched" –she made a spasm movement with her whole body –"and then he texted someone and started smiling like a madman." Sasuke thought the description was slightly unfair but he didn't comment on it, it was mostly accurate after all.

"Are you feeling sick, Sasuke?" Ino asked him. "And who were you texting anyway?"

He realised that this was an opportune moment to reveal his date with Naruto, but somehow he couldn't bring himself to do it. The scenarios he had thought up during history flashed through his head and he decided that no, they didn't need to know yet. Depending on how the afternoon progressed he would know whether to tell them.

"Gaara", he replied without hesitation, "inside joke." The others fell silent. Gaara had quite a reputation throughout the public school system –and private school system, in fact –as dangerous and sadistic. Sasuke's friends knew that he was close with the redhead but they never tried to befriend –or even meet –him themselves. In all fairness the rumours were mostly true and Sasuke would probably keep his distance as well if he didn't know the small redhead so well. This made a rift between him and his friends however, and whenever they were reminded of Sasuke's strange acquaintance they tended to fall quiet rather than say anything offensive.

It annoyed him at times, but mostly he was glad to have Gaara to himself. Besides, name-dropping the redhead always got him out of sticky spots when he needed it. He cast an eye towards the clock on the corridor wall. _13:55_. Naruto had two hours and five minutes to find and get to Otogakure. Was he too mean? Yes, probably. Did he care?

Not in the slightest.

* * *

Sasuke waltzed into Otogakure ten minutes before their appointed time and made himself comfortable on one of the stools by the bar. Orochimaru greeted him with his usual shadow of a smile and walked over.

"Sasuke-kun, I'm surprised to see you here today", he said in his quiet, veiled voice. Sasuke returned his slight smile.

"I'm waiting for someone", he replied, "though I doubt he'll show up." The statement weighed on him in a manner he did not expect.

"Oh?" Orochimaru mumbled. "You do not seem too disheartened… ah", he exhaled suddenly, staring intently at the Uchiha, "a test?" Sasuke, through years of experience, was used to Orochimaru's unnerving ability to guess at truths and remained unperturbed by it.

"Quite", he answered smoothly, "if he manages to find me, I'll let him buy me coffee." Orochimaru chuckled lowly.

"You always were the devilish one…", he paused for a long while, scrubbing a coffee stain off the dark wooden counter, "…you must really like this boy." He said finally, catching Sasuke off guard.

"What makes you say that?" He asked warily, studying the fluid movements of the shopkeeper. Orochimaru took his time before answering, rearranging the perfectly piled cups and letting his piercing gaze sweep across the nearly empty room.

"You never bother to inconvenience someone you do not care for. And you are here waiting. Also…", he looked straight at the Uchiha, "you have never brought any friends save Gaara here." Sasuke hadn't really thought about that. Otogakure had always been his turf, his secret nest when things got rough. He never brought anyone there; friends, family, enemies… and yet he had invited Naruto without a second thought, pleased at himself for forcing the blonde deep into his own territory. He chose not to comment on Orochimaru's assessment of his behaviour and the man went to work cleaning the spotless area behind the bar whilst Sasuke waited in silence.

At ten past four his stomach had grown heavy and his mind cynic. Naruto was obviously a no-show –though he could hardly blame him. Sighing in defeat he called Orochimaru over to order a cup of coffee for himself. Might as well when he was already there. The owner hummed at his request, not meeting his gaze and making no move to make the Uchiha's order.

"Not quite yet." Was all he said. Sasuke arched an eyebrow at him; he had never been denied coffee by the shopkeeper before, even when he didn't have any money on him. Orochimaru looked up at him. "He'll come", he said, his soft voice certain, "trust me." Sasuke glanced at his watch.

"He's fifteen minutes late", he enlightened the owner, "what makes you think he'll show up?" Disappointment and heavy regret grew in his chest as he talked. Orochimaru shook his head, a small smile grazing his pale features.

"I have yet to meet a man who wouldn't", he said cryptically.

'_Well that's delightfully straightforward'_, Sasuke thought sullenly just as the bell above the door rang, signalling the arrival of a customer. Busy trying to think of some scheme which would allow him to get his cup of coffee, he was startled when someone collapsed on the stool next to his. Surprised, he turned around to face the very man he had given up waiting for. Naruto looked entirely finished, his breath slightly uneven and his hair even wilder than it had been the previous day.

"Do you have any idea", the blonde asked him, "how hard it is to find this place?" He looked straight into Sasuke's eyes and the younger man felt all his earlier anxieties leave him.

"You're late", he remarked, smirking. Naruto looked at him incredulously.

"First", he said, holding up one finger, "I had to ask about a hundred people in school before I found someone who knew of this place. Then", he held up a second finger, "my teacher dragged my class out until a quarter to four and lastly", he extended a third finger, "I got lost in the maze of houses around here." Sasuke felt a mixture of empathy and humour simmer in his chest, the blonde had shown up after all. Naruto narrowed his eyes at him. "Is your phone turned off?" He asked. Sasuke extracted it from his pocket.

"Oh, look", he said carelessly to the black screen, "it is." Naruto let his head fall onto the bar and Sasuke could have sworn he heard Orochimaru chuckle.

"Alright", the blonde said, his voice muffled by the wood, "you've punished me enough now, haven't you?" Sasuke couldn't help himself, he started laughing –the man looked so _pitiful_. Naruto's head perked up, his eyes glancing hopefully at Sasuke.

"Sure", he replied, "as soon as you buy me coffee I'm done." Naruto sat up straight again, grinning victoriously.

"Coffee it is", he confirmed, turning to Orochimaru only to have two take-away cups placed in front of him. "Uhh…", he glanced at Sasuke, obviously not sure how to handle the disconcerting barista, "I usually drink-"

"Hazelnut latte", Orochimaru interrupted in his usual quiet tone, "and plain coffee", he added, looking at Sasuke, "go enjoy the sunshine", he finished, turning away from them both. Sasuke smirked; the café owner took it upon himself to decide when his customers should have take-away or stay inside. Naruto looked more than a little disconcerted, but put down a few bills on the counter and rose from his seat. Together, they exited the coffee shop.

"He's a little… creepy", Naruto confided in a hushed voice when they had left the café. Sasuke snorted.

"Some say so", he answered, "he makes fantastic coffee, though." Naruto sipped carefully on his latte and brightened.

"This is delicious!" He sounded genuinely amazed. "Hey, Sasuke?"

"Hmm?" Sasuke replied, sipping his own beverage.

"How'd he know what kind of coffee I wanted?" Naruto asked curiously. Sasuke shrugged.

"Dunno. He's always like that. Like he has secret files on everyone in the world in his head." Naruto snickered.

"The coffee-man who knows all and sees all." He said. "Hey, maybe he's god in disguise or something?" The Uchiha rolled his eyes.

"I highly doubt that."

They wandered through slowly along the street. Otogakure lay in an upper-middleclass neighbourhood with large houses, well-kept lawns and lots of small parks. It was ideal for talking since it was neither crowded nor unpleasant, and they could stop in the small green areas and lay down on the grass for a while.

Sasuke actually had fun. Naruto apologised for the head-hitting several more times and told him that his friends had been laughing themselves silly at his expression when Sasuke threatened to puncture the ball. The Uchiha snickered at that and admitted that he had been in a bad mood and might have overreacted slightly.

They talked about other stuff too; school, family and friends. Naruto's last name was Uzumaki, and he had grown up with his grand-parents since he lost his parents when he was very young. He was 20 and attended Konoha Uni on a football scholarship. His friends –from his description –seemed as rowdy and spirited as he. When Sasuke told him that he was seventeen and a second year in high school, Naruto raised an eyebrow –a mocking attempt to imitate the younger boy.

"I thought you needed to finish some essay since you were applying to University this year?" He said, though his voice was humoured.

"I might have exaggerated a little", Sasuke confessed. Naruto grinned.

"I knew it! I know you're smart but top of your school? I knew that couldn't be true!" He cheered. Sasuke stopped in his tracks and gave him an amused look.

"I am, actually", he said, finding the way Naruto's face fell highly entertaining, "I have been since I started school. It's a family trait…", he finished, hoping Naruto would miss the bitter edge to his last statement.

"Seriously?" Naruto looked alarmed for the first time during their entire conversation. "You must be a genius." Sasuke shrugged.

"Less than perfect is not an option in my family." He didn't know why he said it, something about Naruto just made him trust the blonde. He had slowly come to realise that what he initially had written off as purely physical attraction was equally an interest in Naruto's demeanour and personality. It was impossible to dislike the boisterous blonde.

"So", Naruto said as they continued walking, a wicked gleam in his blue eyes, "tell me about the racoon-psycho who was nice enough to give me your number?" Sasuke felt a smile tug at the corners of his mouth and was grateful for the –surely deliberate –change of topic.

* * *

Their first date lasted nearly five hours, the two of them strolling leisurely through the city and talking. In hindsight that was when he really got hooked on Naruto, and it had to be one of the best first dates in history. Not that Sasuke had any experience of his own. The best part of the evening had been the end, though. They had returned to Otogakure since Naruto had his car there and it was fairly close to Sasuke's house. The shop had closed long ago and the windows were dark, as were those of the surrounding houses. The only source of light was the dim glow from the streetlamps along the road outside the parking-lot. They reached Naruto's car –which was _orange_, much to Sasuke's chagrin –and their never-ceasing conversation trickled to an end. Naruto, who was as energetic and unabashed as his hair looked serious for the first time and Sasuke found himself unable to look away from the vibrant blue of his eyes.

"We'll do this again, ne?" The blonde's voice was deeper than it had been all evening and sent a shiver of promise up Sasuke's spine. "Soon." Naruto added, as an assertion rather than an afterthought.

"'Course", Sasuke managed to make it sound relaxed and confident, matching Naruto's drop in volume. The blonde smiled; not his ordinary, dazzling, happy smile, but a smaller one, and –Sasuke's blazing nerves informed the Uchiha –a much, much sexier one. He was unsure who initiated the kiss, though he suspected it to be Naruto. It was heated and lustful, brimming with promise and confirmation of the sparking electricity between them.

Not even Itachi's snide comments could dampen Sasuke's mood when he closed the door to his house behind him later that night.

* * *

Sasuke and Naruto's relationship grew rapidly from there on. Gaara made a dry remark some weeks later about their inability to stay away from each other, but neither of them were bothered by it. Several more dates followed: restaurants, movies, café's and even an impromptu picnic which Naruto proudly surprised the Uchiha with and which made Sasuke explain wordily about his lack of female genitals to his boyfriend. They visited Naruto's favourite dining place, a small food stand called 'Ichiraku's', where Sasuke learned first-hand that the blonde's love for ramen had unnatural proportions, and they revisited Otogakure frequently, each time marked by a knowing smirk from Orochimaru.

Sasuke got to meet Naruto's friends as well; his best friend Kiba –who was as loud, bouncy and goofy as Shikamaru was quiet, lazy and intelligent –the strange Sai, the silent Shino, the frighteningly odd Lee, the confident and motherly Tenten and a number of other abnormal acquaintances –all suiting Naruto in some peculiar way and all drawn to his animated personality. They accepted Sasuke as if he'd been their friend all along, despite his young years and talent for sarcastic commentary and general rudeness. Tenten in particular seemed to appreciate the company of someone bordering on sane.

They also met up with Gaara a few times, though Sasuke was seeing less of him, and it wasn't entirely due to him being busy with Naruto. He suspected that his best friend too had some sort of relationship going on in his life, but since the redhead didn't bring it up, he let it be. Gaara had been acting odd for several months, and Sasuke was keeping to one of their unwritten rules:

"_If I want to talk about it, I will. Otherwise, leave me the fuck alone."_

In the final week of April, they had sex for the first time. They had spent the evening at a small concert with Naruto's friends and at the end of the night it seemed natural to simply head over to the blonde's apartment. Sasuke remembered it vividly; skin against skin, the softness of Naruto's sheets, the tough muscles of his torso, the hardness of his cock driving the younger man into oblivion…

Needless to say, that was hardly the last time they slept together. Sasuke had taken to staying over at Naruto's as often as he could; his parents were too busy working to really care and Itachi was far away at university. Life had gone from a tediously repeating loop to a world of new things. Sasuke was, for the first time in a long while, content.

The only issue was the fact that he had yet to tell his friends or family about his relationship. He suspected that he would have to tell his family when his brother returned home for the summer, since Itachi had the uncanny ability to see right through him, but the matter of telling his friends was starting to worry him.

In the beginning he had avoided the subject since he was uncertain of how things would fall out, and as time passed he had simply continued saying nothing. The longer his 'secret' relationship went on the harder it became to tell them and in the end he had fallen into the repetitive pattern of ignoring the problem.

There was another reason as well: his life with Naruto had become like a precious secret. Like a pretty rock found by a small child and hidden from the world. He liked it that way; no questions, no explanations. This spring, at least, he wanted for his own. So he made up excuses for spending so much time without his friends. He blamed it on Gaara, on school, on stress or his need for privacy. They initially accepted it but he could see Sakura and Shikamaru turning suspicious. His entire demeanour had changed since he met the blonde. He was happier and more relaxed –and more lecherous, though he made sure not to reveal that to his classmates. He became more absent when in school, often immersing himself in daydreams or recollections. School and the people there simply did not interest him anymore.

But alas, all good things must come to an end and all big lies seek to be unveiled. Sasuke had excused himself from going to the May festival with his schoolmates by saying he had promised to go with Gaara. In reality, Naruto had been talking about the festival for weeks and was childishly impatient to see the fireworks and ride the Ferris wheel. The entire town attended the festival and odds were miniscule he would run into his friends, especially if he kept a watchful eye out for them.

And then his careful planning crashed and burned around his head. Ino had met the mysterious, artistic Sai in her parents' flower boutique and apparently she had managed to get past the autistic shell and make him ask her out. After a cup of coffee Ino was floating on small, pink clouds and only a few days later she could share her happiness with her best friend when they 'bumped into' Sai and his sinfully attractive friend Naruto. Sakura, who had really only fallen in love with Sasuke in all her life, seemed to be on a slippery slope towards head over heels-land. Sasuke could sympathize; he too had fallen for the blonde after all. Ino and Sai had, during their second date, decided to bring their friends together during the May festival, and Sakura and Ino were brewing not-so-secret plans to make sure she and Naruto ended up alone together.

Which brings us back to where we started: the fateful lunch during which Sasuke was informed of all this and strictly told that if he _had_ to go with Gaara then the redhead would join them, because Sasuke had been nonchalant towards the lot of them lately and this was _really_ important to Ino.

Brilliant. What a mess he had immersed himself in. Sasuke swallowed harshly whilst Sakura and Ino continued their plotting, blissful smiles on both their faces.

'_Fuck. Fuckity-fuck fuck.'_

* * *

It was Wednesday and Sasuke had spent the last two days wishing intensely that the problem would simply solve itself. It didn't. Not even when he on Monday evening curled up in his bed, rocking back and forwards and _praying_ that it would. If possible, it had even worsened. Tuesday he and Naruto had been able to meet for the first time for five days since they both needed time away to study, it had been his first face to face with Naruto since the blonde had the apparently romantic encounter with Sakura, and Sasuke had been looking forward to hearing his version of the tale. Only Naruto had failed to mention it at all, and since he didn't really know anything about Sasuke's friends in school, the Uchiha could hardly prod the issue. He hadn't even mentioned that their festival-date was to be with another group. Instead, he had acted entirely normal and left Sasuke's mind filled with doubts. Maybe Naruto was actually interested in Sakura too? The blonde had admitted to being bisexual and to the fact that he had mostly dated women before. His general type also seemed better suited for Sakura; smart, positive, attractive, adventurous and kind yet firm. As a matter of fact, it sounded like a profile of Sakura –perhaps Naruto had fallen for her just as she had for him? Ino's rendition of the meeting was sparks flying and interest flaring as they greeted each other. Maybe…

Doubts and self-reproach gnawed on his insides as he pushed open the door to Otogakure. He had done what he considered the only sensible thing: called Gaara. The redhead already sat by the counter, hunched against it with his head hanging heavily. Sitting down next to him Sasuke wondered if he looked as miserable as his friend. Neither of them needed to order their coffee, Orochimaru brought them their usual as soon as the Uchiha sat down. He stared down into his cup in silence and saw the redhead mimicking him from the corner of his eye.

"I haven't seen the two of you look like that for years", the shop-owner commented softly, "it seems like two good stories untold." Gaara looked up, shadows haunting his aquamarine eyes.

"You first", he croaked to Sasuke. The Uchiha stared ahead. There was a mirror behind the counter, within which his reflection stared back with a lost expression. His black hair was tousled from the wind outside, his pale skin shining in the soft light of the shop. His eyes, ebony wells so much like his brothers, lacked Itachi's certainty and confidence. His brother would never be in his seat, never do such a mistake.

Suddenly, he hated the boy with the terrified gaze. He was better than this. He was an _Uchiha_ and god be damned if he let some sexy blonde or a pair of teenage girls scare him. Straightening in his seat, he told Gaara everything; keeping Naruto secret, lying to his friends, Ino and Sai, Sakura's crush and Naruto's suspicious behaviour. He finished by confessing his doubts –that he wasn't good enough for Naruto. He was too boring, too mean, too unattractive, too brooding and too cynical. The redhead listened quietly through his tirade, as did Orochimaru. When he was done his best friend downed a large swig of coffee, staring ahead.

"About seven months ago", he said evenly, "My psychologist retired and his successor adopted my case. Hyuuga Neji." Sasuke looked at his friend. Gaara only ever kept his voice completely void of emotion when they assaulted him inside. Whatever ailed him, it was important. "Little more than three months ago", the redhead continued, "I slept with him." Sasuke found himself staring, speechless, at the boy. Gaara's moral compass was hardly functional but _sleeping with his psychologist_? Orochimaru refilled their cups.

"Continue", he murmured. Gaara shrugged.

"The last months he's been struggling with the patient-doctor dilemma or whatever and yesterday he… ended it." The slight pause directed Sasuke's attention to just how affected Gaara was by this. "He's relinquishing my case and said it's better if we never see each other again." The redhead resumed his story. "He's quite new, only 24 years old, and has a lot of reputation and stuff at stake…", he sipped his fresh coffee, "only problem seems to be that I…", he broke off, looking sideways at Sasuke, "…seem to have fallen in love with him."

Sasuke was stunned. It took a lot of effort to surprise the young Uchiha but his best friend had succeeded splendidly. His emotions were in disarray; he was glad that Gaara seemed to have finally crawled out of his icy shell, saddened that it had ended so badly, worried that Gaara would recoil from this burning experience and retreat further into himself and empathetic towards the redheads blue mood. But mostly, he was accosted by a singular emotion which spread throughout his limbs like wildfire –sizzling and roaring until all other feelings were incinerated and only one response remained. Sasuke was furious. Normally his anger was of the more diluted kind, often taking the form of sarcasm or condescending remarks –but not this time. Liquid, violent ire grasped him, invading his mind. It raised a crystallised wall in his conscious, exiling all unnecessary thoughts and feelings. It picked his raw wrath up with nimble fingers and formulated a single, obsessive thought: Hyuuga Neji would pay for what he had done. His sudden state of calm cruelty must have alerted his friend, for Gaara looked at him, contemplative, and then shook his head slightly.

"You will do nothing." He ordered. "Revenge is a dish best served in person." He fixed his chilly eyes on the Uchiha's black wells –so filled with murderous intent –and Sasuke felt the fight leave him like air from a punctured balloon.

"Understood." He replied. Gaara wanted to handle the matter himself, but should the redhead ever need him he would gladly be there –scythe in hand.

"Hmm", Orochimaru hummed thoughtfully. The man had been silent throughout their little exchange, and seemed to have soaked the silent implications and complex undertones into his infinite mind. "Gaara-san", he addressed the redhead formally, "you seem to have a firm grasp on how to resolve your situation. Be wary, though, that you do not lock on to _this_ road alone. There are other paths to succeed in reclaiming lost pride, which can more pleasurable, and more rewarding." Gaara nodded silently. He would consider it; the two boys always took what Orochimaru told them to heart –mostly since he was very nearly always right. "As for you, Sasuke-kun", he continued, pinning Sasuke with his sharp gaze.

"Yes?" He answered, forcing his voice to remain even under the harsh scrutiny.

"Your issue seem to be the self-resolving kind. Tell your friends and Naruto-kun or they will simply tell each-other." The man shrugged. "Both roads lead to the same city."

Sasuke stared at the counter-top. If only things were as simple in real life.

* * *

In the end Sasuke's instincts had over-ruled his convictions and Saturday rolled around without him telling neither his friends nor his boyfriend about the slight… predicament. Normally he would have told Naruto with little issue, but once the idea of Sakura and the blonde had manifested itself in his mind –fed by Ino and Sakura both –he had found himself unwilling to confront his boyfriend.

In a last, desperate attempt at salvation he had convinced Gaara to accompany him to the festival that evening, to have at least one ally in place. He had also formulated a plan. He and Gaara would arrive early along with his friends from school, meaning he could spend some time with them before Naruto and his friends would show up. Before the inevitable clash Sasuke would slip away with some excuse, call Naruto and the two of them could have their date –_alone_ –far away from the others.

In the name of Murphy's Law and common sense, that plan would never succeed.

Sasuke threw himself on his bed with all the dramatic flair he possessed, helplessly swinging his arms and sighing audibly. Gaara, who was lounging in his chair reading a book, glanced at him.

"I know", Sasuke said, resigned. The redhead had already expressed his views on the impending encounter of doom: _"It's your own fault. Be a man. Suck it up."_ To be quite honest with himself he didn't know how it had reached this point, it had just sort of… rolled on without his consent. The reason for his predicament was obvious: he had done nothing to cause it, but he hadn't done anything to stop it either.

Naruto and his merry lot had invited him to pre-party with them –downing some drinks before the festival –but he had declined, saying he needed to spend the first hour or two with his friends. That gave him a slim opportunity to come clean… or go with the plan. His intellect helpfully supplied –in a dry, sarcastic tone –that Gaara –the second most brilliant plotter he had ever met –had given the 'plan' the not very comforting name: _A study in foolish self-deception and general idiocy_.

He fleetingly entertained the idea of calling Itachi for counsel. As much as he loathed coming to his brother for help the man had a knack for setting things straight in a matter of minutes –no matter how complex a task he was faced with. He quickly discarded the thought when he considered Itachi's probable reaction. He did not need to add sadistic assault from his brother to his ever-growing list of worries.

No, he would simply have to tell his friends before they met Naruto's group. He had approximately two hours to find the right moment and… he would. He would tell them. He relaxed against the cover of his bed.

"Idiot", Gaara mumbled without looking up from his book.

* * *

**A/N: For those of you who think Sasuke's behaviour is a bit over-dramatic… once more: Have you **_**read**_** the manga? He should have drama queen tattooed on his forehead…**

**So, first chapter is up and the tension is tangible, no? Worry not, this story is already finished(at a total of 40 pages) and the second part is ripe for posting. It should be up in another week or two, so keep an eye out!:) Until then: Review my dears! I put a lot of hours that I do not have into this one…**

**/DoD**


	2. Part Two

**Disclaimer: You all know this part; it's mostly out of courtesy. I don't own Naruto and I am ever grateful to Kishimoto for creating it. He's a cool dude. **

**Couples: Naruto/Sasuke (Sub: Neji/Gaara.) **

**Rated: M (as in Mature, yaoi, boyxboy smex etc.)**

**Please note: In this story they do not practise the use of condoms. Thankfully, they are fictional characters and so need not worry about sexually transmitted diseases, you, little children, do have to worry. So please practice safe sex.**

* * *

**AN: Behind lies the crescendo, ahead the climax and aftermath (oh, I can't even put into words how much pun is intended). Have fun and don't forget to review, kiddies.**

* * *

_Carousel _

_Part: 2_

_By: Daughterofdespair_

* * *

Twenty agonising confession-free minutes had passed since they reached the festival. It was a pretty sight; red and yellow lanterns lit up streets lined with stands selling masks, food and candyfloss. Booths with fortune-wheels and games were cuddled between the shops and the city was filled with people in traditional clothing sporting joyful expressions on their faces. Children darted through the masses laughing loudly at the imagined freedom of the evening and at the street-corners stood mimes, musicians and performers.

Sasuke had difficulty enjoying it; guilt and nerves weighing him down like heavy lead weights on his shoulders. Gaara hovered at the edge of the group, silently observing his surroundings with an expression of feigned boredom. His attentive gaze gave him away, though probably only to Sasuke. The redhead had barely raised any objection against going to the festival, something which during normal circumstances would have alerted Sasuke to some sort of scheme, since the young redhead loathed this type of event and avoided everything similar with skilled precision. Now he was too caught up in his own chaotic situation, however, to consciously notice the signs or ponder Gaara's objective.

When they reached one of the market-squares the group of youths stopped at a stand selling colourful masks, Ino and Sakura giggling and 'ooh'-ing about the different designs. Sasuke stared ahead, sweating despite the ice which seemed to subsist in his veins. He would have to tell them soon. When they left the stand he would call for the attention of the group and tell them all he needed to say something and then just –come clean. Yes, that would be a suitable gameplan, he just had to take the plunge. Caught up in his erratic feelings he didn't notice when Sakura eagerly nudged Ino in the side.

"I thought you said they wouldn't be here until later!" She whispered excitedly. Sasuke froze at the words. Ino turned to look in the direction Sakura was indicating with her head, confused.

"What? Oh, it's them!" She grinned widely and waved. "They're early!" Sasuke's head snapped to the side searching the crowd in desperate hope… maybe it was someone else… maybe…

The familiar group of people making their way across to them, Sai in front, crushed every hope of redemption. Ino waltzed forwards, giving Sai a kiss in greeting while the remainder of the two cliques stood a few metres apart, studying one another. Sasuke tried to sink into the ground and disappear –but to no avail. Soon he caught sight of brilliantly blonde hair at the back of the group. Naruto's eyes were searching the crowd, but soon he would turn around and… The blonde fixated on Sasuke, his face splitting up in a huge grin. Through his paralysed terror, he Sasuke marvelled over the fact that despite everything going on that smile still sent jitters through his stomach.

"Naruto!" Sakura's happy voice exclaimed beside him. The blonde's gaze shifted marginally as he took in the pink-haired girl.

"Sakura-chan", he greeted pleasantly, walking towards them both. By now the rest of the group –including Ino and Sai had stopped to watch the interaction. Naruto's friends all looked slightly confused at seeing Sasuke there, and the Uchiha was actually surprised that none of them had said something yet. Perhaps his look of utter despair was a give-away to stay silent. To his other side he could hear a quiet, muffled snort. Gaara, though still scanning the crowd, obviously found his situation entertaining.

'_Traitorous little bastard…'_, Sasuke thought vehemently. Naruto had reached them now and he couldn't help but look up into his stormy blue eyes, praying that some sort of understanding would pass between them. Sakura opened her mouth to say something just as Naruto slid his arms around Sasuke's waist and swooped down to kiss him.

It struck him then, that no matter how bad things would be when the kiss ended Naruto's kisses would always be a blissful moment of peace. He reflexively wound his fingers through his boyfriend's blonde hair and kissed him back, pouring all of his miserable feelings into the now frantic lip lock. He heard Kiba wolf-whistle in the background, but the sound was muted and disfigured. He was in his own personal world, a bubble of peace where only he and Naruto existed. They broke apart, and the blonde smiled down at him.

"Hey babe", he said casually. Sasuke could feel the icy tension prickle against his skin as Naruto stepped back. "You never told me you were friends with Ino-chan and Sakura-chan", he continued good-naturedly, "what are the odds, huh?" Sasuke swallowed harshly. The world was turning mute. He could feel Ino and Sakura's glares piercing his skull, Naruto's expression slowly turning confused at the strained stillness of their little gathering and Sasuke's tense stance.

"_Sasuke_!" The two girls exclaimed in unison.

"Sasuke?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"Troublesome", Shikamaru muttered somewhere behind him. Sasuke's tongue felt twice its normal size and his limbs were screaming with adrenalin, desperately urging him to flee.

'_Shitshitshitshit! Oh well…'_, he thought sardonically, _'can't get worse.'_ Naturally, one should not anger the gods with such wishful statements. The moment the thought wormed into his head he felt a hand close around his upper-arm and glanced to the left to see Gaara's eyes fixed on the crowd, gleaming with purpose. Before Sasuke could fully open his mouth to try and question this, the redhead spun him around, murmured:

"Help me out for a sec" and crashed his lips against Sasuke's.

'_Oh lord of all that is fucking fair –__**why**__? Why, why, why, why, why, whyyyyyy?'_, his mind screeched helplessly. The kiss lasted few seconds before Gaara pulled away, smirking triumphantly.

"Well", he said casually, "I'm off to buy some lemonade." He turned and stalked in the direction he had been staring previously, and finally the candy stick in Sasuke's brain broke and he was fully functional once more.

"The hell you are!" He growled. "Get. Back. Here. Now." His anger fuelled his ability to move and allowed him to focus on Gaara rather than his angry friends or furious, disappointed boyfriend. Gaara turned back, looking extraordinarily bored by Sasuke's roaring temper.

"All is fair…", he said casually, before turning to face Naruto, who looked much like he didn't know whom he should kill, "It was a ruse. No need to overreact." Sasuke felt like crying. Gaara's amazing ability to be absolutely socially inept was rearing its ugly head and he had to take the fall. As if Naruto would even _understand_ what the redhead was saying. Apparently satisfied with having disarmed the situation Gaara wandered off into the crowd towards what Sasuke assumed to be Hyuuga Neji…

…And left him with an infuriated Naruto, two scandalised teenage girls and the round-up group of Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, Sai, Tenten, Shino and Lee.

"Care to explain this, _Sasuke_?" Sakura said venomously at his side. Naruto crossed his arms and stared at the young Uchiha with the coldest eyes Sasuke had ever seen.

"Yes", his boyfriend said, "I'm rather curious myself." His tone was quiet, but trembling with barely-controlled emotion. Sasuke blanched under the staring eyes.

"I… uh…"

'_Fuckety fuck. Mayday! Body not working again.'_ So this was what it felt like being trapped in one's own net. Suddenly there was a comforting pressure as a dainty hand was laid on his shoulder.

"Calm down, guys. Obviously there has been a lot of misunderstandings here", Tenten voice was soothing and seemed to have a calming effect on the company, albeit a small one. "Sasuke?" She questioned.

"Yes?" He managed to produce, focusing solely on talking to the young woman who seemed to be on his side.

"One thing at a time." She said, smiling encouragingly. Sasuke nodded, taking a deep breath. He was an _Uchiha_ goddamnit! He could handle himself anywhere! Chilling calm, unlike anything he had felt the last week coursed through him. He recognised it well –he had lived with it for seventeen years –and though the emotional mayhem of the last weeks seemed to have exiled it he welcomed it like a lost son. Control. He was finally in control. Suddenly the task ahead of him appeared almost too easy, and certainly within his ability. Lifting Tenten's hand off his shoulder he straightened his back and turned to look at Sakura and Ino. Shikamaru and Chouji had moved slightly to stand beside the girls, though their expressions were hardly expectant.

"Ino, Sakura, Chouji, Shikamaru", he addressed them, "this is my boyfriend of two months –Naruto", he indicated to the fuming blonde. "Naruto", he continued, "these are my friends from school." Having managed the introductions he continued, talking mostly to his friends: "I'm sorry I haven't told you earlier and I honestly have no excuse." He then looked straight at Naruto. "Listen, I'm not even going to pretend that I can understand what level of insanity Gaara is on, but at least I'm sure he's in love with some bloke named Hyuuga and that _unspeakably disgusting _moment right now was a ploy to make him jealous." The chill in Naruto's eyes wavered a bit, but apparently Sasuke's speech had not appeased him enough.

"Am I supposed to believe that he would just-", Naruto began, taking a step closer to the Uchiha. He was interrupted, however, by the least expected available person.

"Hyuuga Neji?" Lee shouted, eyes wide and sparkling, drawing everyone's attention, "could it be that that youthful young man is Neji's great love?" Naruto stared at his friend, apparently thrown off track by the outburst.

"Don't be stupid Lee", he argued, "there's no way Neji could ever fall in love, he's way too much of a stuck-up prick." Sasuke smirked, suddenly wondering whether Neji and Gaara's first round of sex had simply been the effect of too much pent up frustration regarding the each counterparts personality. It certainly wouldn't surprise him.

"Actually", Sasuke commented quietly, "his name _was _Hyuuga Neji, a psychologist." Naruto spun around to stare at him in horror.

"Those two…", he said meekly. Lee's face split into a grin.

"How wonderful!" He exclaimed. "Our groups seem to be bound by fate, do they not? Such marvellous-", he was quickly silenced when Tenten clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Look", she said, "We'll be over by the food-stands. You can join us after you've sorted this out!" With a firm grip on Lee she ushered Kiba and Shino across the square. Chouji trailed after them, soon followed by Shikamaru who stayed long enough to give Sasuke a look which clearly stated: _'Fix it.'_ Now left with the two girls and Naruto, the Uchiha was feeling increasingly anxious.

"Naruto", Ino said quietly, "could you give us a moment alone?" She looked straight at her fellow blonde who nodded curtly and walked off to one of the stands further down the road they'd come from. Silence reigned over the three remaining teens.

"Why?" It was Sakura who spoke. Sasuke looked into her green eyes, silently inquiring what she meant. "Why didn't you tell us? Even when Ino and I had met Sai and Naruto… you let us go on and on about it. You let me talk about your… your _boyfriend_ like that. Do you even like him? Do you even…", she ranted on, obviously a victim to a lot of emotions. Sasuke reached out put a hand on her shoulder, much like Tenten had done for him.

"I don't know", he admitted, "in the beginning I wasn't sure it would last and then… then it was just easier keeping things the way they were…", he hated himself for not having a better explanation. Ino snorted.

"Well you managed to surprise us all right…", she said haughtily. Sasuke grimaced apologetically.

"I was going to tell you before they arrived today, but then they were early…"

"And why not before tonight?" Ino countered. Sasuke sighed.

"Sakura", he said, looking at the pink-haired girl again, "you rarely show much interest in anyone since…"

"You", Ino filled in unabashedly.

"Yes. Since me. And to tell you the news that a guy you actually liked was my boyfriend…"

"So you would have kept it a secret for ever?" Sakura asked incredulously. "Break up with him so I could have him?" Her gaze told him that she had no comprehension for the madness he was spouting.

"No!" Sasuke replied, surprised at his own outburst. "Sorry Sakura, but no way in hell." He stepped back from the girl. Ino and Sakura glanced at each-other for a brief moment and then their eyes lit up like the lanterns overhead and they threw themselves at him, hugging him tight enough to constrict his breathing and shrieking incomprehensible gibberish. Sasuke was in a state of shock. If there was one thing his intellect would never understand it was the bi-polar temperament of women. They finally let him go, grinning at him.

"We are really angry with you for lying", Ino stated happily.

"And though your concern is sort of sweet I don't need a babysitter", Sakura chimed in with a gleeful clap of her hands.

"But", Ino continued, "it's just _too cute_!" Sakura giggled. Sasuke felt like a damp towel just landed on his shoulders. He had completely forgotten why he had chosen to keep the girls in the dark to begin with…

"This is great", Sakura said to her best friend, "two of the hottest guys we know –dating!"

"In love!" Ino confirmed joyfully. Sasuke arched an eyebrow.

"Hn", he replied.

"Oh don't deny it", Ino told him, swatting his shoulder with her palm, "you're so in love!"

"And you better make up with him", Sakura chided in mock-anger, "off you go", she shooed him in Naruto's direction.

"But don't think our little talk is over, Uchiha", Ino told him as he stepped back; "we'll talk about your inability to share emotions tomorrow."

"And Sasuke…", Sakura's jovial tone subsided a bit and her expression relapsed into sincere solemnity, "in the future… trust us won't you?" With that they left towards the others and Sasuke reluctantly started searching for his boyfriend. He really hoped this mess wasn't huge enough to keep Naruto angry…

He found the blonde further down the street. When Naruto saw him he nodded towards one of the alleyways which served to connect the wide street with the road by the canal and Sasuke followed him through it. It was less crowded by the waterway since the festival kept to the main roads, and not as many people would disturb them. A family of three ambled past as they crossed the uneven cobblestones. When they reached the canal Naruto leaned on the fence meant to keep people from falling in and Sasuke sidled up beside him. They stood in silence for some time while Sasuke was figuring out what to say. In the end, Naruto spoke first:

"Why didn't you tell your friends about me?" He asked quietly, and Sasuke could clearly hear the numerous questions hidden within the inquiry: _'are you ashamed of me? …Are you ashamed of them? Are you not serious about this relationship? …Are you…'_ Sasuke felt the answer tumble off his tongue before he even knew what he was saying:

"I wanted to keep you for myself", Naruto glanced at him, "I wanted to keep my perfect little world as far from reality as possible", he stared ahead, "and", he added as an afterthought, "I didn't have the energy to put up with Sakura and Ino's squealing." Naruto snorted; was that a good sign?

"You're weird", he replied, "when I met you I wanted to introduce you to everyone so that you could be a part of every aspect of my life." Naruto's hand came up to play with the Sasuke's hair. "Why wouldn't you want that?" Once more the answer seemed to fall out of him without his consent. Like the truth could not be stopped by any human means.

"You and I are different", he replied, enjoying the feeling of strong fingers fiddling with his hair, "You are a point of gravity to which everyone is drawn. You are… completely free of restrictions or self-loathing." He almost cringed at the last word, but he _wanted _to continue, he needed to show Naruto his true self. Or at least part of it. "My world is a dull, lifeless place which I have endured on pure principle. My brother and I don't get along no matter how much I want us to, I haven't had a real talk with my parents for over a year, not since the hospital-merger, and my friends are more chanced than chosen. The only part of that life that actually intrigues me is Gaara…" Naruto, who until that moment had been listening raptly, tensed. "Gaara", Sasuke persisted, "who is mentally insane enough to provide some entertainment." Without warning, Naruto pulled him into a hug, burying his nose in Sasuke's raven locks.

"You're not allowed to call me an idiot anymore", he mumbled into the younger man's tresses, "You have wonderful friends who obviously care about you, a family who's still together and a ridiculously bright future ahead of you. How could that be dull?" Sasuke burrowed his face in Naruto's shirt, inhaling the scent of his lover.

"It is", he said, his words coming out muffled through the fabric, "compared to you at least." He felt his boyfriend chuckle and freed himself enough to look up into laughing blue eyes.

"My life is boring compared to you, too, Sasuke. You and I are just too damn interesting." Naruto said merrily, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. "But", he continued, suddenly grave, "what did you mean about self-loathing?" Sasuke bit the inside of his cheek.

'_Fuck.'_

"I-", he turned to stare at his lover's shirt again, "it's a family tradition to inspire self-hating, I think. They never say anything, never demand anything but… less than perfect is not an option. Unfortunately for me; Itachi is perfect whereas I'm not." Naruto scoffed.

"Number one in your school isn't good enough?" Sasuke glared at his boyfriend's chest.

"I don't expect you to understand", he replied quietly. "And…", he fell silent. He had been on the verge of divulging too much. Far too much.

"And what?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing."

"Spill it, S'uke." There was a warning in Naruto's voice. Sasuke took a deep breath.

"Why did you choose me?" The question came unbidden and he felt his insides burn with shame because of it. His lover was quiet for some time.

"Sasuke", he finally said, his voice calm, "are you a fucking moron?" Sasuke's head snapped back.

"You're the moron, idiot", he growled, "you can't even aim a ball in the right direction, for fucks sake." He stared defiantly up at Naruto who just smiled slightly down at him.

"Truth is… uh…", he began, the sheepish smile Sasuke had come to know all too well forming on his face –it was the same smile he had worn when he accidentally drenched the younger man's homework in ramen.

"Yes?" Sasuke inquired icily. The blonde looked like a resigned puppy.

"That day", Naruto began carefully, "sort of… didn't happen the way you think." Sasuke arched an eyebrow at him, taking a step backwards out of his boyfriend's arms so he could easier pierce him with his gaze, "I sort of aimed at you…" Sasuke eyes snapped wide open, mouth preparing to start a frontal assault when the blonde waved his hands furiously in a placating gesture. "I didn't mean to _hit_ you!" He explained frantically. "I just wanted a reason to talk to you, and I thought if the ball landed at your feet you would pick it up and…" Naruto looked panicked.

Sasuke couldn't help it: he snorted. Then he started chuckling and in the end he was laughing so he could barely stand. The heightened tension of the last week made the statement so much funnier than it actually was.

"You…", he gasped, trying to control himself, "hit me with a ball… on purpose?" Naruto's miserable face only made him laugh even harder, all the pent-up stress residing in him dissipating. When he had finally gathered himself and could stand straight again he looked at his boyfriend, a humorous smirk on his face. "Any particular reason?"

"I told you", Naruto pouted, "I wanted a reason to talk to you and I… well… you know me! My mind doesn't work right under pressure!" Sasuke's tilted his head to the side quizzically.

"Why would you want to talk to me?" He asked. That had been way before they had any affiliation to one another. The blonde looked at him incredulously.

"Why?" He replied emptily. "Because I wanted to ask you out, obviously." Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"You hadn't even talked to me… and frankly, when you did I wasn't exactly nice…", he mused, "so why would you insist? I thought you were feeling guilty for hitting me in the head…" Naruto looked like he had just fallen down the rabbit-hole.

"B-but you…", he stuttered, "you can't possibly be…"

"Be what?" Sasuke asked testily.

"Look, I don't… you can't… you seriously don't _know_?" Naruto finished his incomprehensible speech. Sasuke sighed.

"Know _what_?" Naruto shook his head, looking decidedly lost.

"S'uke", he said, "I love you." Sasuke felt a pang of warmth in his chest, enveloping him as the words settled into his consciousness. Naruto loved him. _Loved _him. He was so immersed in the sensation of safety and euphoric contentment that he nearly didn't catch the remainder of the blonde's speech. Naruto seemed to realise his faraway thoughts, for his lips, parted to continue speaking closed and he bent down to press them against Sasuke's mouth.

"I love you." The blonde said, more firmly this time. "I think I might have loved you from the moment you kidnapped my football, but… I never thought you were this dense." Though his frustrated irritation had dispersed at Naruto's words it returned along with his indignation at being called dense. Sasuke was getting tired of not comprehending what the blonde was on about.

"Since I'm apparently _dense_", he hissed the word out, as if it was poisonous "feel like elaborating?" Naruto ran a hand through his blonde strands, looking as exasperated as Sasuke was feeling.

"S'uke", he looked seriously at the young Uchiha, "what made you ask me why I chose you?" Sasuke's eye twitched at the change of subject.

"Isn't that obvious?" He replied, his irritation making the truth spill out all the easier. "You're social, optimistic and have so much charisma it's cascading out of your ears. You're surrounded by people wherever you go, you're incredibly nice –not to mention you're ridiculously good-looking." Sasuke glared at him. "In short, why would you choose someone like me?"

And then Naruto laughed. And laughed. He laughed until Sasuke got mad enough to punch him in the stomach. Then he doubled over, wheezing, but at least he stopped laughing.

"Sorry", he gasped, "I just", he smiled at his lover as he struggled to right himself, "the irony…" Sasuke _glared_. Naruto smiled indulgently. "I've had similar thoughts myself; see… why you would choose to date someone like me…" Sasuke's anger ebbed away.

"What?" He snapped. The blonde looked up at the sky, a fond smile on his lips.

"Well, I'm not a genius, and my family is not super-smart and educated", he began, "my friends are mostly morons and I'm kinda immature…", Sasuke looked at him expectantly, but the man didn't continue.

"Your point?" He asked. Naruto met his gaze.

"Well, that made me feel sort of unworthy…", he trailed off. Sasuke scoffed.

"Idiot. Why would that matter?" Naruto smirked at him.

"My point precisely." And then it hit home. Sasuke chuckled.

"So we're both idiots…", he concluded reluctantly, "though that still doesn't answer my original question: why would you aim a ball at me?" Naruto regained his odd expression from previously.

"You really have no idea, do you?" He asked. Sasuke shook his head. "S'uke", Naruto spoke softly, "have no one ever told you how to use a mirror?"

"What?" Sasuke questioned in disbelief.

"Well, they're flat surfaces that-", Naruto began.

"I know what a mirror is!" Sasuke interrupted. "Though I fail to see their importance right now." Naruto sighed tiredly.

"Sasuke, has it ever struck you that people look a lot at you? Or that you get a lot of love-confessions at school?" Sasuke frowned.

"I don't see how that's relevant, either. Besides, I don't pay that much attention to other people." Naruto stepped forward and cradled Sasuke's head in his hands.

"S'uke, what I'm trying to tell you is that you're unbelievably beautiful." Sasuke froze, overcome by a sudden sense of disorientation. Numerous memories of confessions, glances and strange behaviour flowed through his mind. He stepped back from his lover.

"Don't be stupid", he found himself saying, his voice distant to his own ears, "it is true that people have always shown a certain amount of interest in me but that is due to my heritage and status rather than my looks." He shook his head resignedly. "Look, Naruto, it's not like I'm saying that I'm ugly, but I'm hardly special. My brother-"

"You know", Naruto interrupted, "you talk an awful lot about your brother." Sasuke opened his mouth to reply that in fact _everyone else_ talked an awful lot about his brother, wherein lay the problem, but he didn't get the chance before Naruto continued: "I don't know who or what caused you to have this kind of fixation on him, or why he has caused such an inferiority complex in you but I never really thought that it blinded you to the truth." Sasuke glowered at him. It was hardly news to him –he had come to grips with his fixation years ago when Gaara forced him to confront it –but Naruto was missing the point entirely. Growing up in the Uchiha household Sasuke had always been the second, less-successful, less attractive brother whereas his brother had been the perfect, intelligent, handsome one. In fact, if he hadn't been so sure that Itachi's despicable personality would make the blonde physically ill he would have been terrified at the prospect of letting them meet at all, worried that Naruto would fall for his brother. And that it would then proceed to show that Itachi, too, was Narutosexual and the two of them would live happily ever after.

Because honestly, who wouldn't want Naruto?

"Can we drop this?" Sasuke finally asked, sighing. He certainly wasn't up for discussing his looks with someone as biased as his boyfriend.

"No." Naruto replied instantly. "Y'know, Orochimaru said something about this but I never thought he was serious." Sasuke sent his lover an incredulous look.

"When have Orochimaru ever _not_ been serious? And said something about _what_?" His head was starting to hurt from only understanding half of the conversation. Was this how stupid people felt all the time?

"He told me you had no understanding of your own value", Naruto clarified, "and that your ignorance had left more heartbreaks in your wake than you will ever come to comprehend…", he paused before adding, almost reluctantly: "he also said that the only person he had ever met who seems immune to you is Gaara."

Sasuke began forming a reply about how absolutely _preposterous_ the idea of Orochimaru saying such a thing was when an old memory simmered to the surface of his thoughts, calling for attention.

'"_He's fifteen minutes late, what makes you think he'll show up?"_

"_I have yet to meet a man who wouldn't"'_

The implications of the reply suddenly seemed very clear, albeit very unbelievable, to him. It would be a lie to suggest that Sasuke suffered from low self-esteem, but his sense of self-worth had always had its roots in tangible matters such as intelligence or ability. He had based most of it upon the few areas in which his brother was lacking: loyalty, friendship and a more pleasant personality. In looks particularly he had simply ignored any compliments, disregarding them as baseless lies or attempts to get into his good graces. This mostly because looks and charm were Itachi's key assets apart from intelligence. He was tall, handsome and generally had women swarming around him at any given moment. In comparison Sasuke's shorter statue and softer features were nothing extraordinary.

Then again, most aspects of Sasuke were nothing extraordinary in comparison to Itachi. Perhaps his looks were actually another one of those things which was exceptional to the general public and quite normal in the Uchiha household?

"So what you're saying", he began slowly, "is that you hit me in the head with a ball because you thought I was 'beautiful'?" The entirety of the statement sounded even more ridiculous out in the open than in his head, and he unwillingly found the corners of his mouth quirking upwards. Naruto's lips formed a lopsided grin.

"Something like that", the blonde replied, "though I have to say: I'm kind of glad I hit you that day." Sasuke raised his eyebrows in a mixture of resignation and disapproval.

"How nice for you", he remarked coldly. Naruto, as always, was unperturbed by his irritation and grinned, pulling him into another hug.

"Don't be like that, ne?" He paused and Sasuke slid his arms around his boyfriend's waist and laid his head to rest in the crook of Naruto's neck. "Hey…", the blonde said quietly against his hair, "how come this talk started with me being angry and ended with me apologising?" Sasuke snorted.

"You didn't apologise." He answered.

"As good as", Naruto complained, "when you got here I was so angry because…" the abrupt silence alerted Sasuke to the change of mood.

"Because?" He prodded. His lover took a step back so they could look at one another. His face was sporting an expression of half-hearted anger.

"Gaara kissed you!" Naruto bristled. Sasuke sighed, had he forgotten that until now?

"That he did", he replied evenly, "I already explained it, remember? He did it to piss off Hyuuga and I most certainly didn't agree to it." Naruto still looked peeved. "Why is it bothering you so much?" The blonde chewed on his lip, obviously annoyed still.

"I… you two are really close…", he began, "…and… I just… I know you're not now but… maybe before…" Sasuke chuckled.

"How long has this been bothering you? Besides, you're really close with Kiba aren't you?" He said calmly. The blonde grimaced at the mentioning of the brunette. "But since you're asking: no. We've never been anywhere close to that. Quite frankly, we're far too alike. And I'm not attracted to him at all." He added the last part for good measure, since Naruto looked like he needed to hear it. The blonde looked relieved, though still slightly uncertain.

"'Course… sorry I brought it up, I'm just worried someone will come and snatch you away", Naruto mumbled. Sasuke felt something warm well up in his chest, warming him inside out and heating his skin.

"Stupid", he told his lover, "I never had that kind of interest in anyone until I met you." He had never told anyone before –not even Naruto –about that. But at that very moment he felt it was necessary to say it.

The look in Naruto's eyes proved to him that he had been right to do so.

* * *

All things considered the festival turned out splendidly. They met up with their friends briefly but decided to spend most of the remaining evening alone. In the wake of the dramatic collision they needed it; besides, Sasuke refused to fuel Sakura and Ino's fire by letting them see how soft he was around the blonde. Not yet at least.

Naruto pulled him off to ride what seemed to be every attraction he could find. They had such an impressive make-out session on the Ferris wheel that they entirely forgot to enjoy the view –even more memorable was the fact that they didn't even realise that they had reached the end of the ride until the guy who handled opening the doors coughed pointedly and they broke it off only to see the queue outside shuffling uncomfortably.

They left the Ferris wheel feeling especially giddy.

At midnight they had found their friends at the pier and joined them –under a heavy rain of innuendo and snide comments about their absence –to watch the fireworks. The group was more or less intoxicated, Sai was hugging Ino from behind and Shikamaru was nowhere to be seen. Kiba had conjured up his one true love –Hinata –from somewhere and it seemed like he had finally had some luck in courting her. Lee was –for once –rather upset when they arrived:

"Naruto!" He wailed at the blonde, who grimaced. Lee was a particularly annoying drunk. "Neji-san refused to talk to me earlier!" He looked downtrodden as he added: "He was rather rude actually…"

When they had steered Lee's thoughts away from either suicide or finding and confronting Neji, the group found places to stand by the wide stairs leading up from the docks. The fireworks were amazing: a play with blazing flames of colour acting out the roles as the crowd 'ooh'ed and 'aah'ed in chorus.

Sasuke stood, looking up at the painted sparks that showered the dark skies. His friends were gathered around him, his boyfriend holding his hand.

'_Perhaps… this is what people refer to when they talk of unforgettable moments.' _

Naruto bent down to kiss him.

'_Yes. I should think it is.'_

* * *

The door slammed shut behind them, Naruto's strong hands buried in Sasuke's raven locks as the blonde planted feverish kisses along his neck, chanting under his breath:

"_I love you I love you Iloveyou…_"

Sasuke moaned at the teeth grazing his heated skin, bucking up against his lover and revelling in the feeling of friction assaulting his cock and the pleasured groan escaping Naruto.

Quickly. _Quickly._ His mind insisted. He steered his lover from the wall in the hallway, the two of them nearly toppling over when they reached the open doorway to the kitchen.

"Fuck… _S'uke_", Naruto moaned pulling the younger man's hips closer to grind their groins together. Sasuke bit his lip to muffle the whine threatening to flee from his throat. His lover made a move to steer their stumbling feet towards the bedroom.

"No… _ah_", Sasuke breathed as rough fingers slid underneath his shirt and brushed over his stiff nipples, "just… do it here…", he panted, gripping the back of Naruto's shirt desperately. Blue eyes locked with his own obsidian ones as his lover pulled his head back to look at him, hands still wandering across the smaller man's abdomen. Arousal swirled in cyan depths, making their normally bright colour darken into deep blue.

He didn't have to ask twice.

Without warning the Uchiha found himself hoisted up and pushed onto the kitchen counter in the small room, hands returning to explore his body with renewed energy. He let his own soft hands slide underneath Naruto's shirt and crashed their lips together. Passion and need coursed through him, his legs moving to clasp around his lovers waist, bringing their clothed members together in a frantic search for release.

Full lips left his own and a whine of loss and complaint made it out before he could stop it. Naruto grinned at him. Not his usual, happy and slightly foolish grin but an animalistic one, exuding dominance and sex. _Gods _how he loved it when Naruto got like this.

"Impatient, _hm, S'uke_?" His lover husked. Sliding his hands down he gripped Sasuke's arse and lifted him down. "Lose the clothes." He ordered, letting go of the younger man and reaching out to search through the bottles by the stove. Sasuke was happy to oblige –his arousal strained against his jeans and he felt as if another second without Naruto inside him would leave him pleading for death. He fumbled with the buttons and had finally managed to slip out of his shirt and pants when Naruto returned, a bottle of cooking oil firmly gripped in his fist. Sasuke wasted to time letting his boxers fall to the floor and reached out to help his lover rid himself of the constrictive fabrics. Naruto's jeans open at last he hooked his fingers in the drawstring of the blonde's orange boxers and pulled frantically.

"_Off_", the word left him as a disfigured growl. His lover chuckled darkly, and Sasuke felt strong hands grip his hips and flip him to face the counter. Hot breath on his ear sent shivers skittering through him as he felt his Naruto's hands descend on his arse, spreading the supple cheeks apart.

"I am gonna fuck you so hard that all you will remember when I'm done is my name_._" Naruto told him, nipping his ear as he moaned at the words. A jolt of giddy pleasure and expectations coursed through Sasuke at the promise. He felt the reassuring warmth of his lover's chest disappear from his back but was stopped in the motion of turning his head to peer over his shoulder by the sensation of a warm, hot wetness trailing along his spine. He whimpered, his hands clawing at the plastic counter as Naruto's tongue made a path down his back, the hot saliva quickly turned cold in the air but he really couldn't care less. His every limb was on fire with sensation, his erection painfully pressed against the cabinet door.

His boyfriend's tongue dipped past the small of his back and slid downwards, wetting the way towards the twitching rim. Languidly, his lover circled the opening time and again before Sasuke cracked and let go of the desperate moan which had been building a block in his air-pipe. Without warning the slick muscle drove into him, leaving him writhing and panting as his lover's tongue explored his insides.

"Nhhhg… _Naruto-_", he moaned, "hurry… the fuck _up_!" He bit out as Naruto lapped at his entrance with wide licks. The tongue retreated.

"If you insist." His lover purred and an oil-slicked finger plunged into Sasuke.

"_Ahhh…_ Fuck..", the raven breathed at the sudden intrusion. Another finger joined the first, stretching him with the efficiency garnered through diligent training. Sasuke felt a third finger enter, the three digits probing, searching- and then he screamed in pleasure as jolts of ecstasy erupted from his prostate. It felt so fucking _good._

"There, huh?" he heard Naruto mumble, a hint of pride mingled into the dangerous allure of the voice behind him. The fingers drew back momentarily, only to be thrust back in, ramming into the bundle of nerves that made Sasuke see white. Naruto finger-fucked him viciously, sending stings of incomprehensible moan-mingled words over his lips. He fought to keep his legs from giving out while the digits inside him crooked to gain better access, making mind-numbing scratching motions against his prostate.

"Nnnghh.. Naruto… need you…", he managed to voice with much difficulty. His lover growled in agreement.

"'bout time too… can't wait any longer", the blonde's voice was strained, struggling to keep his desire in check. The fingers disappeared. Sasuke widened his stance and prepared himself for what he knew was coming, trembling in anticipation of the main event.

And then Naruto was inside him, rough hands gripping his slim hips. In one swift push he found himself utterly full and deliciously unsatisfied, his straining erection neglected of its needed release. He braced himself against the counter-top, his fingers curling around the edge while his lover pulled back and thrust back in with all the more force.

It was hard, rough and unforgiving. The stress, the frustration, the emotional mayhem of the day; it all needed to be relieved from their bodies. Naruto crashed into him, attacking his prostate again and again. Moans, groans and the smell of sweat and sex permeated the air.

"Fuck", the blonde growled as they neared their release, both teetering dangerously near the edge. Suddenly, Sasuke found himself empty, denied the throbbing flesh of his lovers cock as he was twisted around to face the blonde.

"Wha-", he managed to procure before two hands slid from his hips to his arse and he was lifted off the floor. Reflexively he wrapped his slim legs around the man again while Naruto carried him the few short steps across the kitchen to the only bare wall in the room. Within seconds Sasuke was once more impaled by his lover, his back now pressed against the cold stony surface of the wall. Naruto thrust upwards ferociously, his gaze dark with untamed lust; never leaving Sasuke's flushed features. The younger man wound his arms around his boyfriend's muscly neck, buried nimble fingers in blonde locks and tugged harshly. They were both reaching their climax, bodies slick with sweat and the precome leaking from Sasuke's member, muscles working tirelessly against one another. The Uchiha shivered from the dual pleasure of his lover pounding into him coupled with the friction assaulting his cock, trapped between their bodies.

"Mmm… S'uke", Naruto moaned, burying his head in Sasuke's neck. The younger man's fingers tightened painfully around the yellow tresses.

"Naru… to…", he panted, "…coming… _**Naruto!**_"

The world exploded into ecstasy and white spots flickered at the edge of his sight. He felt himself tighten around Naruto and the spray of hot warmth inside him coupled with the grunting of his name into his neck and the teeth sinking into his flesh, marking him, told him his lover too had crashed into oblivion.

They stayed perfectly still for a few moments, harsh breathing slowly evening out. Finally, Naruto slipped out of him and pulled him along to the bathroom. The fatigue of thorough satisfaction hit him in the shower, and his lover carried him to the bedroom and proceeded to make love to him. Slow and precious and divine. They needed that too, needed to physically manifest their feelings for one another. The silence of deep night was heavy around them when they finally collapsed, side by side.

* * *

Sasuke's eyelids wearily opened to reveal sleep muddled black eyes. A strong tan arm lay around his waist, keeping him close to the warm comforting body behind him. A feeling of safety and contentment nested in his chest as Naruto's scent enveloped him. Confusion nagged at his consciousness; the room was still save for the sleeping blonde's breathing, darkness making it hard to see the contours of the furniture.

'_What time is it?'_

His muscles were heavy with fatigue and his lower back stung uncomfortably as he squirmed around to view the alarm on the bedside table.

_04:42_

The hell?

Annoyed at himself, he tried to figure out why he had woken in the crack of dawn, mere hours after mind-blowing sex like some kind of masochistic insomniac. Insomniac. Sasuke groaned inwardly. Gaara.

'_Fuck me sideways with a rusty kitchen-knife'_, he thought vehemently, slipping out of bed with outmost care to not rouse his lover, _'on second thought, don't. That would be terribly uncomfortable.'_

He padded silently across the room, gathered a clean change of clothes from the small stash of garments he had left over the course of the past weeks, crept out of the bedroom and entered the bathroom. He showered quickly though the hot water made him consider staying under the spray for another hour at least and then climb back into bed with his boyfriend, but as tempting as the thought was he couldn't. He wouldn't be able to sleep now anyhow, and he was quite certain the redhead was waiting for him.

When Sasuke and Gaara were about ten years old the two of them had been through a rough patch with their respective families. Sasuke had several spectacular rows with his parents and Gaara… well, he was handling being ostracised quite badly and was letting his frustrations out through his fists. One particular night Sasuke found himself unable to sleep. His father had yelled at him at dinner, telling him he was a shame for the Uchiha name. He had cried silently for hours and his mind and body was numb with exhaustion but try as he may he could not bring his eyes to stay shut.

Five in the morning or so had found the youngest Uchiha sneaking out of his house for a walk. He loved the early hours of the day; the ultimate time for contemplation when all was quiet and all slept, be they youngsters or elderlies. When the morning mist lay thick and cold and the first, probing light of dawn coloured the world in grey and silver. He had ventured to the park nearby, where he and Gaara often met. When he reached it, he found that the redhead had been struck by the same impulse as him, and sat silently by an old tree, deep in thought.

Since then it had become an unspoken tradition for the two of them. Whenever they fought, or something drastic occurred in their lives, they would meet up at the park at five. His body was so well-versed in the routine that it awoke on its own in perfect time for him to rise, pull on some clothes and walk the short distance to their meeting place.

Usually, in any case. Problem was: Sasuke was not asleep in his room at home, and the mere thought of leaving the apartment without showering the reminders of last night off made him shiver in discomfort.

Showered and dressed he dug Naruto's spare key from the empty jar in the kitchen cabinet, wrote a quick note for the blonde and left for the bus, a slight limp in his gait to enlighten the quiet world of his ministrations the previous night. His few companions on the journey through Konoha were early workers, or else night-shifters going home. They all held in common their blessed silence, however, as if the people who moved through the city at this time were all part of the same secret alliance, in which conduct was decided by strict rules. Sasuke found that he loved it, the comfortable stillness, and decided to himself that once he graduated from University he would join their brotherhood and become one of them.

When he arrived at the park it was nearly half past five, though he would be damned if Gaara complained. Prick.

He found the redhead on one of the swings, looking every bit as exhausted as Sasuke felt. He looked up when the Uchiha drew near, face expressionless as always.

"You're late." He informed. Sasuke glared at him and he smirked. "I'll assume things worked out between the two of you then?" He asked while Sasuke sat down on the swing next to him.

"No thanks to you", the Uchiha answered icily. They both stared out into the mist.

"Yeah… sorry." The word was grunted out, as if the lack of usage had made it rusty. Sasuke felt a sarcastic smile tug at the corner of his lips; he would venture he was the only one to ever receive an apology from the redhead, definitely the only one upon whom he had bestowed several. Still, Gaara was, along with numerous Uchihas, one of the few people who found making apologies harder than Sasuke himself.

"Mm", he hummed lowly, "so?" Aqua eyes fixed on him as his best friend's head turned to face him. A moment of silence passed –then a smirk formed on the redheads face.

"We're back at sex", he said, "I won the battle." Sasuke breathed deeply.

"Who'll win the war?" He questioned.

"That remains to be seen." They both returned their gazes to the swirling fog. The realisation that Gaara considered Neji an equal opponent in mind games set him slightly on edge. What sort of man had his friend managed to unearth? Glancing at the redhead, he saw the ghost of a smile on the other's lips, a sadistic gleam playing in green-blue eyes.

'_Who the hell am I worrying about?'_, he found himself thinking exasperatedly, _'since when have Gaara ever not been able to handle himself? I should be worrying for that Hyuuga.'_

"Good luck then", he told his friend, "not that you'll need it." Gaara nodded.

"We good then?" he asked. It was a confirmation of what they already knew, but the importance of it did not pass unnoticed by the Uchiha. This was the part of his best friend only he knew –and, perhaps, in the future Hyuuga Neji as well.

"Yes." He paused. "Though if you drag me into your scheming without consent again I will castrate you", he vowed venomously.

"Understood." Gaara countered and glanced at his watch. It was nearly six. "Otogakure?"

Sasuke nodded.

* * *

The coffee shop didn't actually open until seven o'clock, but Orochimaru was always there an hour early to set things up and rarely minded letting them in. They each cradled their cups, revelling in the contrast the warmth did against the chill they had left outside. The silence in the room was broken only by the sporadic noise caused by Orochimaru piling cups or bringing out supplies. The two teens were both staring ahead, lost in thoughts entirely their own. The memories of the previous night flooded Sasuke's brain, overwhelming him. Too much had happened for him to process it all at once.

"_I love you S'uke"_

He felt his face heating at the memory, a squirmy yet entirely pleasant feeling growing in his chest. The rest of their lengthy conversation rushed past him and his mind stumbled awkwardly on the specific subject which had brought about Naruto's confession. Immersed in a pensive state he decided to ask for an outsider's opinion.

"Gaara", he addressed his best friend. The redhead had never lied to him, besides Sasuke found it unlikely that the psychopathic teen would find reason in lying to avoid hurting another's feelings.

"Hm?" Gaara replied absently, sipping his coffee.

"Am I good looking?" Aqua eyes sharpened in an instant, focusing on the raven.

"So Naruto finally realised it, huh?" Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at his friend.

"Elaborate?" The redhead sighed.

"People generally believe that the people they meet and form relations to –friendship or love –are inhumanly perfect." He said. "In the beginning they are blinded into thinking their new… _acquaintance_ is without faults or flaws. It seems Naruto finally accepted your mortality." Sasuke blinked.

"What exactly are you insinuating?" He asked carefully.

"All people have defects." Gaara deadpanned. "Your main defect happens to carry the name Uchiha Itachi." Sasuke scowled. The redhead was getting too close to the subjects of the previous day for him to feel comfortable.

"It's too early for you to complain about my brother-complex." He muttered sourly.

"That's precisely it", Gaara said, ignoring his unease completely, "_your_ brother-complex. It may be that people were comparing the two of you when you were younger, but fact is, Sasuke, that the only one who still thinks of you as Itachi's lesser little brother is _you_." The Uchiha narrowed his eyes; Gaara was overstepping some serious boundaries here. Silence reigned once more when the redhead's tirade ended. Sasuke simmered with fury and he knew that had it been anyone but Gaara, they would have received a fist to the face by now.

He was contemplating telling his best friend this when the redhead spoke again in a monotone voice:

"And as for your question, Sasuke-chan", the Uchiha recognised the suffix as a reminder of how girly his query had been, "you're so fucking gorgeous that it annoys me to look at you." Sasuke felt his mind do an odd sort of lurch, seventeen years of inferiority complex rearing its ugly head to contradict the statement. And yet fact remained that Gaara never lied to him. Unbiased, analytical Gaara who was never wrong.

"That…", he began uncertainly.

"Take it from someone who's been rendered invisible by it for most of his life", Gaara interrupted. There was a slight edge of bitterness in his friend's flat voice, nearly non-existent, but enough to alarm the young Uchiha. Gaara, if anyone, did _not_ suffer from low self-esteem…

'_At least not out loud…'_, Sasuke mused. He realised that it would go over very badly if he tried being considerate about this, so he opted instead for the route which had always seemed the easiest for the two of them. Blunt, straightforward rudeness.

"Do I detect jealousy, Gaara-chan?" He therefore countered, staring into the depths of his coffee. "You know I could never be as pretty as you." The redhead glared at his obvious baiting.

"Shut up", he growled, "I certainly wouldn't be envious of the likes of _you_." Sasuke snorted.

"Thank god for that. I don't think I could stomach you suddenly turning into a snivelling self-centred whiner." His best friend smirked evilly.

"Quite right. It's enough that one of us is." Sasuke shot him a dirty look. Opening his mouth to reply scathingly, but silenced himself when Orochimaru's soft voice entered the conversation.

"Boys", the barkeep said quietly, "not that I do not enjoy your company… as a matter of fact you remind me of myself at your age", his eyes misted over in reminiscence for a moment before continuing: "intelligent, wrathful, twisted and entirely confounded by the ways of social interaction." Sasuke could feel the twin of his own glare emanating from his friend, but Orochimaru was entirely unperturbed by the vicious sharpness of the youths' glowers. "But in all honesty", he went on, looking over at them with amusement, "you did not think that I would let you linger around for hours drinking free coffee without profiting from it? I do have some business sense." Sasuke felt his glare slip into a blank look and knew that Gaara's frown had done the same.

"What?" The redhead said quietly, a near whisper in the room.

"When the two of you are in here my revenue triples", Orochimaru explained, ever so calmly, "groups of young girls, solitary young boys, pristine business men…", he trailed off, "and as interesting as you homework surely is I find it hard to believe that it can hold the attention of so many people for hours on end." The implications of the statement hit Sasuke like a punch in the gut.

"Orochimaru", he said, his voice dangerously low, "have you been pimping us out for customers?" The older man shrugged.

"I am merely suggesting that while you are just now coming to grips with whatever allure you possess, others have not been quite as slow on the uptake." Gaara made a noise like a strangled cat.

"Unbelievable", Sasuke muttered. Orochimaru smiled slightly.

"The two of you are fascinating specimen in that way…", his misty voice was pensive, "Sasuke-kun, thinking highly of yourself does not make you your brother." He pinned the dark-haired boy with an unusually sharp look. "And Gaara-san", he transferred his gaze to the redhead, "being human and letting emotions rule over mind every once in a while does not make you weak." The teenagers stayed quiet, contemplating this.

"Well", said Gaara finally, letting a mouthful of coffee past his lips, "as much as the advice is appreciated. Don't think we'll forget about you pimping us out." Sasuke sniggered, the weariness from a long morning and far too little sleep loosening his stoic appearance. Orochimaru hummed lowly. They sat in peaceful stillness for a long time, each of them lost in the abyss of their own mind.

"Things have changed, hasn't they?" Sasuke asked at last, a rhetorical question. Things _had _changed. The miserably bored lone wolves had taken the plunge into life with a voraciousness which left him stunned.

"Yeah…", Gaara replied absently. Orochimaru smiled.

"For the better, I think", said the barkeep, "I am… glad you have both found men worthy of your love." Sasuke was about to argue that he wasn't so sure Neji was worthy when the insinuation of the words stuck him.

'_Love?'_, he thought.

"_I love you S'uke."_

He glanced at his friend and saw a nearly-there smile play in the corners of aqua eyes. Gaara looked… content. Happy even. As if the weights that had dragged him into the bottomless pit all his life had been lifted and he was free to soar up towards the sun.

'_Love.'_ He decided with a small smile of his own.

* * *

It was nearly eight o'clock when he reached the door of Naruto's apartment, unlocking it and slipping inside. He toed of his shoes, taking in the hush of early morning the and lack of movement in the small space. The sun was climbing steadily upwards in the sky, its rays filtering through the windows and colouring the room with an ethereal yellow light. He trotted into the small kitchen, disposing the brown paper bag in his hand onto the counter. Half an hour earlier, Orochimaru had slipped one bag each to the leaving youths and mumbled in a lofty voice:

"_Breakfast is the best apology for leaving a still-sleeping lover"_

Sasuke vaguely entertained the idea that the odd man had his and Gaara's lives surveyed through hidden cameras. He was starting to heartily agree with his boyfriend that the kind of insight the man possessed was not normal.

He looked up as he heard the bathroom door open and close, and was greeted by the sight of Naruto, fresh from the shower and clad only in midnight-blue boxers as he towelled his blonde tresses. Sasuke refrained from licking his lips and had to remind himself of the soreness of his lower back lest he fall into temptation at the sight of the muscled chest, decorated by small droplets of water sliding down tan skin.

"There you are", said his lover gruffly, but there was neither accusation nor anger in his voice, "what are you up to, disappearing like that?" an adorable pout formed on Naruto's features and Sasuke had to struggle to make his lips form a smirk instead of a fond smile.

"I left you a note.", he pointed out. Naruto's eyebrows rose, amusement replacing the pout on his face. He reached out and grabbed a flimsy paper from the countertop which Sasuke immediately recognised as the message he had jotted down that very morning.

"You call this a note?" Naruto asked, his mouth twitching as he struggled not to smile. Sasuke glanced at the paper, one eyebrow raised.

_I'll be back._

_S_

"Yes?" He replied. His lover snorted, unable to bottle his mirth up anymore.

"'I'll be back?' Really S'uke?" White teeth flashed as the grin formed on his face. "Is this your way of telling me you're a robot, sent from the future by my older self?" Sasuke scoffed.

"And what would my purpose here be?" He asked, rummaging through the paper bag.

"Weelll…", Naruto said thoughtfully, pursing his lips, "perhaps my sexual frustration would have destroyed the world and you were sent to prevent it?" Sasuke looked up at his lover incredulously.

"And I was chosen for this mission of selfless sacrifice?" He replied sarcastically, pulling two large coffee-cups out of the bag. Naruto pouted again.

"You make it sound like a chore! Perhaps you won the lottery in the future or something and- coffee!" The blonde ended his rant to grasp for the cup. "You are officially the best boyfriend ever." He purred happily, taking a sip.

"Hn. Whatever, idiot." Sasuke murmured, amused. Blue eyes widened.

"This is Orochimaru's coffee", Naruto decided, "you went all the way to Otogakure?" A split second went by as Sasuke contemplated hiding the truth from his lover.

"Yes", he replied finally, "I had to talk to Gaara." The temperature in the kitchen dropped slightly.

"Oh?" Naruto said, his tone strained. "And what did he say?" Sasuke sighed, rubbing the base of his nose with his thumb and forefinger.

"Naruto", he said calmly, "Gaara has gotten himself into enough issues without having your wrath hanging over him as well. Trust me; he wouldn't have done something that drastic if he had any other options." He looked up at his boyfriend. "I actually think he's really in love." Naruto grimaced.

"How anyone could fall in love with Neji, I'll never know", he muttered. Sasuke watched him curiously.

"How do you know him anyway?" His lover shrugged, taking another sip of coffee and leaning languidly against the counter.

"He used to go to my Uni", he explained, "and he's friends with Lee and Tenten –how they put up with him I'll never know –thank goodness he's graduated though, I can't stand him. We used to fight all the time. Arrogant, stuck-up pompous prick", he groused.

"Oh really?" Sasuke said lightly. "So no double-dates then?" Naruto looked so horrified for a second that the Uchiha laughed at him. "I guess not."

"Don't _scare_ me like that", his lover said breathlessly. "_Gods _S'uke, give me a heart attack, would you?" Sasuke snorted.

"If it makes you feel better", he told his boyfriend, "my terms for reconciliation with Gaara were that if he ever does something like that again I'll cut his dick off." Naruto's expression morphed into another grin and he strode across the small kitchen to give Sasuke a swift kiss.

"Now _that_ is why you're my boyfriend", he said happily. Sasuke watched carefully as his lover walked back to the counter to ruffle through the bag and see what else was in there. His coffee was clasped in his hand, his back resting on the counter right next to the stove as he studied his lover. He thought about what had been said at Otogakure, and what had been said and done the previous night. Naruto was in the process of excavating two muffins and some bagels from the bag, his back facing the Uchiha when the younger man spoke. It was a phenomenon similar to the one he had experienced by the canal; words bubbled and swirled within him and he was powerless to keep them from spilling out.

"Naruto." He said quietly, eyes fixed on blonde locks.

"Hm… yeah, babe?" Naruto replied, still searching the bag for remaining treats.

"I love you." All action ceased at the other end of the kitchen as the taller man stilled. Slowly he turned; blue eyes wide as they searched out the younger man's features.

And then Sasuke's coffee was taken from his hand and placed on the stove and he found himself lifted off the ground, strong arms encircling him while Naruto claimed his lips. The kiss was tender at first, growing passionate and wild with emotion when he slipped his hands into blonde tresses. When they broke apart, panting heavily, he found azure orbs mere centimetres from his own black ones.

"Bedroom", Naruto whispered huskily. Sasuke smirked.

"Breakfast", he replied smoothly, freeing himself from his lovers embrace and walking over to grab one of the bagels. Tan arms snuck around his waist and pulled him into a firm chest.

"Nuh-uh", Naruto told him, "you can't say something like that and expect to get away without long, hot, amazing sex." Sasuke could feel his own body responding to the words alone. He sighed, leaning back against his lover.

"Why do I put up with you?" He asked in mock irritation.

"Because you love me", Naruto answered impishly.

"Tch."

"And now, I'm going to have my wicked way with you. And you won't stop me", the blonde purred, trailing kisses along Sasuke's neck.

"Mmmhmm… and why wouldn't I?" The younger asked; his eyelids shut while he savoured the feeling of a wicked tongue and teeth on his skin.

"Because you left me alone in bed to go see the guy who kissed you last night", Naruto answered, biting down on pale flesh to underline his annoyance.

"Hn. Good try", Sasuke snorted, "the Uchihas invented guilt-trips. It won't work." The blonde growled against his skin, rough hands slipping under the Uchiha's shirt to caress his chest.

"Then", Naruto said, making Sasuke's breath hitch as he brushed across one pert nipple, "because I'm devilishly good in bed."

"Hah", the dark-haired boy groaned, "not better than coffee and a blueberry muffin." He managed to grind out while Naruto's hand slipped down and teased the skin below his navel.

"Hmm… well, then it must be because", Naruto whispered, "you _love_ me." Obsidian eyes snapping open, Sasuke spun around and placed his hands on his lover's shoulders, squeezing tightly and staring into a lust-filled ocean gaze. A smile grazed his young face.

"That would be why." He mumbled, crashing their lips together.

* * *

**BTW- If you think the focus on looks/attraction/self-esteem-issues is a little over the top… they're 17. Have you ever been seventeen? Yeah. That's why they act like that.**

**A/N: So. In a few days I will be leaving home for six months to study in another country. I doubt I'll be able to post there, and though I'll bring my computer I can't say if I'll have the opportunity to write. This fic is my going away present to you all, and I can only hope that you've enjoyed it, and that I'll have another fic or two for you when I return. Until then, stay nerdy and creative.**

**And as always, review please.**

**/DoD**


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